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Hacker claims to have stolen 1 billion records of Chinese citizens from police

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3 years ago

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  • If true, it would be one of the biggest data breaches in history.
  • Anonymous internet user offers to sell more than 23 TB of data for $200,000.
  • Claim of hack comes as China has vows to improve protection of online user data privacy.

SHANGHAI: A hacker has claimed to have procured a trove of personal information from the Shanghai police on one billion Chinese citizens, which tech experts say, if true, would be one of the biggest data breaches in history.

The anonymous internet user, identified as “ChinaDan”, posted on the hacker forum Breach Forums last week offering to sell more than 23 terabytes (TB) of data for 10 bitcoin, equivalent to about $200,000.

“In 2022, the Shanghai National Police (SHGA) database was leaked. This database contains many TB of data and information on Billions of Chinese citizens,” the post said.

“Databases contain information on 1 Billion Chinese national residents and several billion case records, including name, address, birthplace, national ID number, mobile number, all crime/case details.”

Reuters was unable to verify the authenticity of the post.

The Shanghai government and police department did not respond to requests for comment on Monday.

Reuters was also unable to reach the self-proclaimed hacker, ChinaDan, but the post was widely discussed on China’s Weibo and WeChat social media platforms over the weekend with many users worried it could be real.

The hashtag “data leak” was blocked on Weibo by Sunday afternoon.

Kendra Schaefer, head of tech policy research at Beijing-based consultancy Trivium China, said in a post on Twitter it was “hard to parse truth from rumour mill”.

If the material the hacker claimed to have come from the Ministry of Public Security, it would be bad for “a number of reasons”, Schaefer said.

“Most obviously it would be among the biggest and worst breaches in history,” she said.

Zhao Changpeng, CEO of Binance, said on Monday the cryptocurrency exchange had stepped up user verification processes after the exchange’s threat intelligence detected the sale of records belonging to 1 billion residents of an Asian country on the dark web.

He said on Twitter that a leak could have happened due to “a bug in an Elastic Search deployment by a (government) agency”, without saying if he was referring to the Shanghai police case.

He posted again on Twitter later in the day, saying: “apparently, this exploit happened because the gov developer wrote a tech blog on CSDN and accidentally included the credentials”, referring to the China Software Developer Network.

Software company Elastic said it was incorrect to cite it as the source of the breach. The Shanghai government did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.

The claim of a hack comes as China has vowed to improve the protection of online user data privacy, instructing its tech giants to ensure safer storage after public complaints about mismanagement and misuse.

Last year, China passed new laws governing how personal information and data generated within its borders should be handled.

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COAS Visits Bannu and Promises Terrorism Justice

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2 days ago

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Syed Asim Munir, the Chief of Army Staff, traveled to Bannu after the March 4 terrorist attack on Bannu cantonment was thwarted.
COAS examined the general security situation in the region as well as ongoing security operations during the visit.
At CMH Bannu, he also spoke with wounded soldiers and praised their tenacity and commitment. Speaking to the troops, he reaffirmed the Pakistan Army’s commitment to combating terrorism and commended their prompt action in neutralizing the assailants.
In addition to expressing sympathy to the families of the civilians slain in the strike, General Munir promised that those responsible for the planning and execution would shortly face consequences.
He emphasized that such activities reveal Khwarij’s true nature as enemies of Islam and denounced the savage targeting of innocent people.
The COAS underlined that Pakistan will not permit its stability to be jeopardized and that terrorist organizations, such as Fitna al-Khawarij, continue to use foreign weapons while operating from Afghan territory.
When he arrived, Corps Commander Peshawar welcomed him.

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Ethiopia-Pakistan Relations: Ethiopian Ambassador Presents Fraternity Award to Khawaja Asif

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2 days ago

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Khawaja Muhammad Asif, the minister of defense and aviation, received the “Ethiopia-Pakistan fraternity award” from Ethiopian Ambassador Dr. Jemal Beker.
In appreciation of Khawaja Asif’s noteworthy contributions to enhancing Pakistan-Ethiopia bilateral ties, the award was given out.
The Ethiopian Envoy, who spoke at the event, praised the Minister’s work to strengthen the two countries’ diplomatic and economic relations.
The Ethiopian Ambassador said, “Khawaja Muhammad Asif has played a pivotal role in enhancing Ethiopia-Pakistan relations.”
Additionally, he recognized the minister’s pivotal involvement in Ethiopian Airlines’ establishment in Pakistan, which has strengthened connections between the two nations.
In addition to thanking Ethiopia and its ambassador for the honor, Khawaja Asif reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to developing closer ties with Ethiopia.
The Ethiopian Ambassador emphasized that Pakistan and Ethiopia had better bilateral ties than before.

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Issues Affecting Pakistan’s Textile Mills Industry: The Government Is Determined To Address Textile Industry Concerns: FM

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2 days ago

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Muhammad Aurangzeb, minister of finance, has stated that the government is firmly committed to helping the textile industry in every way possible.
He made this pledge today in Islamabad during a meeting with the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association’s leadership.
In order to guarantee the long-term sustainability and future expansion of Pakistan’s industrial sector, the Minister also reaffirmed the government’s commitment to addressing important tax, energy, and funding challenges.
He welcomed the APTMA office-bearers and gave the delegation his word that the government is committed to resolving the issues facing the textile industry since it understands how important it is to Pakistan’s economy.
Muhammad Aurangzeb underlined that resolving the fundamental issues facing the sector is essential to establishing an atmosphere that is favorable for industrial expansion, promoting economic stability, and bolstering the country’s overall growth trajectory.

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