NEW DELHI: The government on Friday confirmed the DNA exclusive that hackers from the Chinese mainland had indeed, made intrusions into security systems of the Union ministry of external affairs.

Officials said that this has been happening for some time now but clarified that the hackers did not have access to the systems where top-secret information is stored.
However the government is taking all precautions and as pointed out by DNA, audit teams will now regularly visit Indian missions abroad for inspection.

A top official clarified that while the IP address were mostly of Chinese hackers, they were not the only ones. Hackers from Sweden and other European countries have also tried to break into many of the MEA secure sites.

“We need to constantly review our procedures for classified information and keep one step ahead of the hackers,’’ admits a top ministry official, who did not wish to be identified

“As far as we know, the hackers did not cut through to the top-secret material,’’ the official added.

Indian officials were not willing to confirm whether or not the hackers were working for Chinese government agencies or were part of the Chinese military intelligence or just doing it for fun. But the matter is being taken seriously and instructions have been sent to all missions to taker necessary precautions. At the end of the day, it is important that all computer systems be updated regularly to keep them safe from hackers, officials reiterate.

Experts believe that the country should have a fool-proof system in place to protect key data.

Source : DNA