No Confidential Data of High-Ranking Government Officials Leaked by 'Bjorka': Indonesian Senior Minister

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com – An Indonesian chief minister confirmed on Monday, Sept. 12, that data of high-ranking government officials had been leaked by a hacker known as Bjorka, but the hacker did not reveal sensitive data.

Coordinating Minister for Political, Law, and Security Mahfud MD said that he has been informed about the matter following a report provided by the National Cyber and Encryption Agency (BSSN).

“I can confirm that their data had been hacked as I already received the reports from the BSSN and my deputy,” said Mahfud in his office in Jakarta.

However, he added, no sensitive data had been leaked by Bjorka. The data only revealed general information that could be retrieved from some data sources.

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“Actually, it’s not confidential data because it can be taken from anywhere, which happens to be similar,” said Mahfud.

Though the leaked data is not confidential, Mahfud said the government is currently investigating the reason for obtaining the personal data of the government officials. Besides, similar action has been taken place to investigate the leaked data related to the death of an Indonesian human rights activist Munir.

All data disclosed by the username Bjorka have already appeared in the mass media. Due to the similarity of the data, Mahfud said that the data could have originated from open sources.
“It’s already appeared in the newspapers every day, such as the data on the president, and ministers. After I read it, there is no highly confidential information. It’s just an ordinary document, but it did happen,” said Mahfud.

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Last week, the username Bjorka has been a trending topic on social media after the hacker claimed to have leaked data comprising registered SIM cards in Indonesia, the general elections commission (KPU), the national intelligence body (BIN), and documents of President Joko Widodo.

House of Representatives to summon officials

Chairperson of the House of Representatives Commission II Ahmad Doli Kurnia Tandjung is planning to summon Communications and Information Minister Johnny G. Plate and relevant officials from the BSSN regarding the leaked data.

Besides, officials from the KPU will also be invited to the meeting with the House of Representatives to discuss data security for the upcoming 2024 elections.

“We will conduct a special meeting to discuss the issue related to the security of population data at the KPU. This would be of our interest at the Commission II [overseeing home affairs],” said Doli at the House of Representatives building in Jakarta on Monday, Sept. 12.

He said the commission will invite relevant parties such as BSSN and the National Police.
“The cyber team from KPU and the police will be invited to the meeting as they are involved in the matter. This aims to prevent a similar incident from reoccurrence, especially since we will have general elections,” he said.

(Writers: Singgih Wiryono, Fika Nurul Ulya | Editors : Dani Prabowo, Sabrina Asril)

Sources: https://nasional.kompas.com/read/2022/09/12/13360501/mahfud-akui-ada-kebocoran-data-pejabat-negara-oleh-hacker-bjorka.

https://nasional.kompas.com/read/2022/09/12/14521481/soal-kebocoran-data-komisi-ii-dpr-bakal-panggil-menkominfo-hingga-bssn