Taliban Confirms Data Breach Amidst Major Cyberattack
The Taliban’s Ministry of Communications has confirmed that documents from multiple government departments have been leaked in what appears to be an unprecedented cyber breach.
On Thursday, the ministry stated that preliminary investigations suggest the documents were obtained sporadically from individual computers lacking proper security measures. However, Taliban officials maintain that their central government database has not been compromised.
Unprecedented Cyberattack on Taliban Government
An unidentified group launched a cyberattack on the Taliban administration’s database, publishing classified documents from 21 ministries and independent agencies online.
In an official statement, the Taliban’s Ministry of Communications said: “Based on the leaked documents, many belong to departments that previously lacked dedicated systems.”
The ministry downplayed the breach, claiming that most of the leaked files were already publicly accessible and related to past years. Officials further insisted that “no system has been hacked, all systems remain secure, and there are no issues.”
Despite these assurances, the Taliban has accused the leak of being an attempt to mislead public opinion through the media.
Government Agencies Affected
The data breach has reportedly exposed information from key ministries, including Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Ministry of Finance; Ministry of Justice; Ministry of Information and Culture; Ministry of Mines; Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice and the Taliban’s Supreme Court.
Thousands of leaked documents have been published on a website called “TalibLeaks.” However, the identities of the hackers and the details surrounding the website remain unknown, with no group yet claiming responsibility for the cyberattack.