The Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) yesterday said that it has launched an investigation into a suspected cyberattack on the Presidential Office, after some members of the media on Friday received what the office said were altered documents pertaining to two meetings last month between President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌).
On Friday night, an e-mail account named “ser lo” sent members of the media on the Presidential Office’s contact list two e-mails containing several files.
The files were purportedly documents prepared by aides for two meetings between Tsai and Su on selecting members of Tsai’s second-term Cabinet.
Photo: Betsy Joles, Bloomberg
Also attached was a purported assessment report on vice president-elect William Lai (賴清德) from early last year, when he competed against Tsai in the Democratic Progressive Party’s presidential primary.
The Presidential Office later on Friday said that the documents were doctored, calling them “fake news.”
The same account yesterday sent another two e-mails to the same members of the media containing files that purportedly detailed how Tsai was divvying up the spoils of office in planning her new Cabinet, as well as a supposed assessment report on how to defeat Lai during the primary.
The bureau yesterday confirmed that the Presidential Office had reported the incident, saying that it had begun an investigation into the incident.
Commenting on the incident, Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Ann Kao (高虹安) said that the Presidential Office should check its record of logins to its e-mail servers from off-site Internet protocol addresses.
The Presidential Office should launch an internal investigation primarily focused on those who have access to its e-mail server to determine if anyone has lost their login information, has been hacked or is leaking information, said Kao, who holds a doctorate in computer science and information engineering from the University of Cincinnati and was vice president of Hon Hai Technology Group’s (鴻海科技集團) Industrial Big Data Office from 2018 to this year.
Hackers might have breached the entire Presidential Office mail server, or someone on the inside either leaked the e-mail contacts or provided user account information to hackers, she said.
Additional reporting by CNA
The US government has signed defense cooperation agreements with Japan and the Philippines to boost the deterrence capabilities of countries in the first island chain, a report by the National Security Bureau (NSB) showed. The main countries on the first island chain include the two nations and Taiwan. The bureau is to present the report at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee tomorrow. The US military has deployed Typhon missile systems to Japan’s Yamaguchi Prefecture and Zambales province in the Philippines during their joint military exercises. It has also installed NMESIS anti-ship systems in Japan’s Okinawa
TRAGEDY STRIKES TAIPEI: The suspect died after falling off a building after he threw smoke grenades into Taipei Main Station and went on a killing spree in Zhongshan A 27-year-old suspect allegedly threw smoke grenades in Taipei Main Station and then proceeded to Zhongshan MRT Station in a random killing spree that resulted in the death of the suspect and two other civilians, and seven injured, including one in critical condition, as of press time last night. The suspect, identified as a man surnamed Chang Wen (張文), allegedly began the attack at Taipei Main Station, the Taipei Fire Department said, adding that it received a report at 5:24pm that smoke grenades had been thrown in the station. One man in his 50s was rushed to hospital after a cardiac arrest
ON ALERT: Taiwan’s partners would issue warnings if China attempted to use Interpol to target Taiwanese, and the global body has mechanisms to prevent it, an official said China has stationed two to four people specializing in Taiwan affairs at its embassies in several democratic countries to monitor and harass Taiwanese, actions that the host nations would not tolerate, National Security Bureau (NSB) Director-General Tsai Ming-yen (蔡明彥) said yesterday. Tsai made the comments at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, which asked him and Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) to report on potential conflicts in the Taiwan Strait and military preparedness. Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Michelle Lin (林楚茵) expressed concern that Beijing has posted personnel from China’s Taiwan Affairs Office to its
PUBLIC SAFETY: The premier said that security would be tightened in transport hubs, while President Lai commended the public for their bravery The government is to deploy more police, including rapid response units, in crowded public areas to ensure a swift response to any threats, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday after a knife attack killed three people and injured 11 in Taipei the previous day. Lai made the remarks following a briefing by the National Police Agency on the progress of the investigation, saying that the attack underscored the importance of cooperation in public security between the central and local governments. The attack unfolded in the early evening on Friday around Taipei Main Station’s M7 exit and later near the Taipei MRT’s Zhongshan
RSS