Rise in Hacktivist Attacks Challenges India’s Cybersecurity Measures
India has experienced a significant increase in cyberattacks, with hacktivist groups emerging as prominent perpetrators. These groups, often driven by political or ideological motives, have targeted various sectors, leading to notable security breaches.
One such group, the Indian Cyber Force (ICF), has been active since 2022, conducting cyberattacks against entities perceived as opposing Indian interests. In September 2023, during India’s hosting of the G20 Summit, ICF reportedly compromised 100 websites and identified over 15 vulnerabilities in government websites. They notably targeted Indonesia’s Kopassus military unit’s domain, rendering it inaccessible, and took down the Indonesian Embassy’s website for approximately 35 minutes. Following allegations by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau regarding India’s involvement in the killing of Khalistani leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar, ICF launched DDoS attacks on Canadian military websites, causing a two-hour disruption. They also defaced multiple Canadian websites, including those of restaurants and medical clinics, displaying messages on a dark background with a Matrix digital rain effect.
The rise of hacktivism is not confined to India. Globally, there has been a resurgence of hacktivist activities, with groups like Stucx Team, Moroccan Black Cyber Army, and Mysterious Team Bangladesh emerging, often motivated by political or religious agendas. Their actions range from DDoS attacks to webpage defacements and “hack and leak” operations. This resurgence parallels geopolitical upheavals, with many hacktivist groups suspected of being influenced or directly managed by state actors. For instance, Iran and Russia have allegedly created or manipulated hacktivist groups to carry out operations while maintaining plausible deniability.
In September 2024, a significant breach occurred involving Star Health, India’s largest health insurer. A hacker used Telegram chatbots to leak sensitive data, including personal details and medical records of millions of customers. Despite Star Health’s initial claims of no widespread data breach, the hacker asserted possession of 7.24 terabytes of data on over 31 million customers. This incident underscores the vulnerabilities in India’s cybersecurity infrastructure and the sophisticated methods employed by cybercriminals.
These incidents highlight the growing challenge India faces in securing its digital infrastructure against hacktivist threats. The increasing frequency and sophistication of such attacks necessitate enhanced cybersecurity measures and greater collaboration between public and private sectors to protect sensitive information and maintain public trust.
