Indian hacking gang exploits computers of Pakistani politicians, generals: report
An India-based computer hacking gang seized control of computers owned by Pakistani politicians, generals and diplomats and accessed their private conversations, The Bureau of Investigative Journalism claimed in a report.
Apparently, this act has been done on the orders of Indian secret services.
According to the report, several of the political targets seem to have arisen from the continued tensions between India and Pakistan.
On January 10 this year, the Indian gang was assigned breaking into the email account of Pakistan Tehreek-e Insaf (PTI) leader and Minister of Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry.
The hackers used malware to get over the computers and target Pakistan’s senior generals and its embassies in Shanghai, Beijing and Kathmandu in a similar way.
Pervez Musharraf, the former president of the Pakistan, had been the most famous Pakistan-related target.
The hacking gang, which operates under the name WhiteInt, is run from a fourth-floor apartment in a suburb of the Indian tech city Gurugram. Its mastermind is a 31-year-old Aditya Jain.
Aditya Jain is an occasional TV cybersecurity pundit who also holds down a day job at the Indian office of the British accountancy firm Deloitte.
For seven years, Jain has run a network of computer hackers who have been hired by British private detectives to steal the email inboxes of their targets using “phishing” techniques.
Sometimes his team deploy malicious software which takes control of computer cameras and microphones, and allows them to view and listen to their victims.
Earlier this year, undercover reporters approached a number of suspected cybercriminals and contacted Jain.
Jain told them, “I offer access to closed source information of email and computers of the POI [person of interest] anywhere across the globe, an average timeline is around 20 to 30 days.”
Jain took a screenshot of Fawad Chaudhry’s inbox, which has been seen by the Bureau.
Fawad Chaudhry expresses concern
PTI leader and former information minister Fawad Chaudhry expressed grave concern on the report and asked if Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto would raise the issue.
