So it was all some kind of hoax. Or maybe more of a cautionary tale.
The supposed hack of an Uzbek government database that threatened to compromise the personal data of up to 27mn individuals in Uzbekistan was not a hack at all, according to the purported perpetrators, calling themselves the Butterfly collective. It was an exercise designed to expose holes in government cybersecurity defences and embarrass officials into taking more determined action to patch holes in state IT systems.
In a statement posted on social media, the Butterfly group described itself as a “a community of ethical, ‘white-hat’ hackers.” It went on to state that the group had “no malicious intent.”
“Our goal is to ensure that the country’s level of cybersecurity reaches the highest possible standard, and we are prepared to assist in this effort,” the statement said. The group also insisted that no actual theft of government data occurred, “even though we possessed the technical capability to do so.”
The statement indicated that the group, seemingly comprising Uzbek IT specialists, was dedicated to combatting malicious internet actors, while making sure government officials responsible for cybersecurity do a better job of protecting sensitive data.
“While those tasked with cybersecurity remained fast asleep, we uncovered a series of critical vulnerabilities and data leaks within government platforms,” the statement said.
Accusing officials of laxity, the hacker group said it was “forced to step in and do the work ourselves! We will openly disclose all threats and vulnerabilities that pose a risk to data—tasks that, in fact, should have been handled by YOU [officials] as part of your professional duties.”
This article was originally published on Eurasianet here.
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