South Africa’s Department of Defence (DoD) maintains its information communication technology (ICT) system – two weeks after a cyberattack reportedly siphoned 1.6 terabytes of data from DoD systems – wasn’t hacked.

A Saturday (2 September) statement attributed to Siphiwe Dlamini, Head of Communications (HOC), has it “preliminary investigations confirm the department has not been hacked”.

It continues: “This is the work of criminals syndicates within the cyberspace aided through information leaked from the Department (sic)”.

The DoD, according to the statement, “has policies in place that prohibits unauthorised access and sharing of classified information (sic)”.

“The investigation continues and perpetrators will be brought to book. The DoD assures South Africans that our systems are secured and measures have been put in place to ensure that the state information is not compromised (sic).”

The hack, apparently the work of the Snatch group, extracted massive amounts of data allegedly containing military contracts, ‘internal call signs’ and personal information. On 21 July the Snatch group claimed responsibility for the data breach and published “a proof pack” a month later. This reportedly contained Defence Material Division personnel information, including contact details. The group subsequently made the hacked data available for download but defenceWeb could not verify this as it would take ten days to download.

Addressing delegates at last month’s MICSSA (Military Information and Communications Symposium of South Africa), SA National Defence Force (SANDF) Chief General Rudzani Maphwanya said the force needed to modernise its ICT and ensure its information systems are secure in light of increasingly sophisticated threats. Defence ICT, according to him, is not “just a support capability but an arm of the fifth domain of warfare”.

On Thursday (31 August) the senior officer tasked with overseeing SANDF Cyber Command, Brigadier General Mafi Mgobozi, was promoted to Chief Command and Management Information Systems (CMIS). His accession to major general took place during a SANDF Chief Work Session at Rhemardo Holiday Resort, Mookhopong in Limpopo, SA Army Corporate Communication reported. His replacement as what Army communications term “Director Cyber Communication” is not named.

source:SA Defence Dept not hacked – DoD spokesman – defenceWeb