Lithuania’s Ministry of the Interior reported a cyberattack on the EPEKIS archival information system. Unauthorized access to the system was blocked, and the ministry passed information about the incident to law enforcement.
The attack was targeted on the EPEKIS system, which provided public services related to issuing personal and other documents and consultations for Lithuanian citizens and foreigners.
EPEKIS has not been actively used since 2018 and currently operates as an archival system. It contains archived data on foreigners who have applied for Lithuanian citizenship. Most of the data consists of foreign citizens’ names and surnames without personal identification numbers.
Interior Minister Martynas Katelynas is quoted as having claimed double authentication and enhanced monitoring measures had already been introduced, and that there is no evidence any data was downloaded.
Cyberattacks on government systems rise
This attack is not in isolation; The Lithuanian Real Estate Register has also been hit, paralleling other attacks government systems across Europe in the last few years including Romania, Sweden, Lithuania and Slovakia.
Rapid response has so far been critical in ensuring a positive resolution. The Real Estate Register attack, however, demonstrates how rapid response can be hampered by slower detection – in this case, detection came only once atypical behavior by certain accounts was noticed.
Once detection is solved, having a good set of recovery and response plans in place is the next step towards success. In particular, having plans and procedures helps ensure a rapid response time and a smoother path towards recovery. Part of this plan, though not all, is having a well-secured backup of your data in case part of the incident involves data loss or corruption of some form. But this is only one part of a coherent whole that has to work in order to mitigate incidents on the fly.
Your Data in Your hands – With TECH-ARROW
by Matúš Koronthály
Image generated by Canva
