Well-known Pakistani ethical hacker Rafi Bloch says that since the audio of a former prime minister has also been leaked, it seems that the bugging has been done in the prime minister's house and not a specific device.
The well-known Pakistani ethical hacker Rafi Bloch, who warned the government of former Prime Minister Imran Khan in an open letter, said in an exclusive conversation with Independent Urdu that 'It appears that the hacker has done these audio leaks for financial gain or money.
A year ago, when the ban on bringing smart devices to high-level country meetings was mentioned, it seemed like an extreme move, but today the issue is in the limelight as recent audio leaks have raised important questions about the country's cybersecurity.
In connection with the audio leaks that started last week, sensitive conversations of Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, government ministers and even former Prime Minister Imran Khan have been leaked.
On August 20, an alleged hacker who created an account under the name 'Indy Shell' posted on a hacker forum about the presence of the audios.
The alleged hacker named his post, Pakistani PM office Data leaked.
His minimum bid was set at 180 bitcoins, which equates to crores of rupees in Pakistani currency.
Independent Urdu spoke to Rafi Bloch, a Pakistani ethical hacker and cybersecurity expert on the issue of these leaked audios, who said, 'It seems that the hackers did these audio leaks for financial gain.'
Rafi Bloch has been ranked among the top five hackers in the world by the American cybersecurity magazine 'Checkmarks' and is currently a senior consultant at the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA).
He said about 'India Shell' that it is a well-known Indian hacking group, which has been working for a decade to 'deface' websites to give their message.
According to Rafi: 'Since this account is new from which the data of the Prime Minister's House was posted, it is necessary to investigate whether it is the same group or someone wants to use their name to get financial benefits or Pakistan's Wants to defame institutions and personalities.'
According to him, the final determination of this matter is possible only through investigation.
Pakistan's National Security Committee has decided to set up a high-powered committee to investigate the audio leaks, headed by Federal Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah.
According to a statement issued on Wednesday night, the meeting also decided to prepare a 'legal framework' related to cybersecurity in the context of audio leaks and in this regard issued instructions to the Federal Ministry of Law and Justice to prepare the said framework.
According to ethical hacker Rafi: 'It's remarkable how serious these hackers are when approached at the government level.
"If not taken seriously by them, it appears to be a nationally stigmatized issue."
Rafi added: 'There is currently no cybersecurity agency in Pakistan that is functioning properly to look at this issue clearly, nor has the government's commitment to our national cyber security policy been implemented.
"In the rest of the world, it is the job of cybersecurity agencies, rather than intelligence agencies, to secure conversations at high-level meetings and summits."
He said: 'It is important to see who attended these meetings. In all the audio leaks that have been or will be, the same person was always present or which room was used the most, if Shahbaz Sharif was present in every such meeting, it is possible that his phone was hacked. .'
He also raised the point that since the audio of a former prime minister has been leaked, it appears that the bugging was done at the Prime Minister's House and not a specific device.
Rafi Baloch, who discovered flaws in Google and Android systems at the age of 28, is currently the talk of the town on social media.
In this atmosphere of conflict when many people are trying to understand these sensitive cybersecurity issues, a letter written by Rafi Bloch to Imran Khan's government is again circulating on social media.
Having previously highlighted security concerns regarding the use of smart devices in highly sensitive Cabinet meetings, I felt obliged to share my concerns with the Prime Minister. In the interest of transparency, the following open letter has been sent to PMO. #CyberSecurity pic.twitter.com/EIv6KbKszf
— Rafay Bloch (@rafaybaloch) June 3, 2021
In this regard, he said that a year ago he had given a clear stand that smart phone devices and tablets should not be allowed in such meetings.
In his letter, he gave the example of Russia, which mentioned electronic typewriters and the recording of meetings on paper because it leaves a forensic trail that makes it easier to diagnose the device.
Rafi Bloch said: 'The phones of those who were part of these meetings, the internet routers, firewalls etc. of these meetings should be seized and forensics should be conducted to help in the investigation of where the cybersecurity issue started.
He further said that if there is a hardware problem, then the devices used in meetings like cabinets etc. are sent abroad or repaired in Pakistan. "In this sense, the supply chain needs to be investigated."
He asked, 'Where did the tablets used in the cabinet come from, who updated the software?' Who has access to the server?
'If a cabinet member took him home during the lockdowns due to the corona epidemic, then his security may have been compromised in this situation.'
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"When people ask me about the audio leaks if they were bugging devices, I say that every smartphone can act as a bugging device by itself."
He added that the Prime Minister's House has a policy that 'debugging' is a routine process. In this regard, it should be seen whether all these precautions were used during this time or not.
In his view, a better solution is still not to carry the devices to such meetings to make matters at the national level safer.
During Imran Khan's tenure, the number of cabinet members was barely more than 50, but in the recent government it has crossed 70. To what extent are these matters safe from being illegally shared after participation?
Independent Urdu contacted Federal Minister for Information Technology Amin-ul-Haq regarding the technology on audio leaks, but he did not respond.
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