FIA Punjab’s cyber crime wing in Lahore has arrested a man who allegedly impersonated the Chairman of NAB. The individual in question used the email credentials to blackmail government officials.
The accused, Basharat Aziz, was arrested in a raid from Fatah Sher Colony, Sahiwal.
This is not the first time that a fake official has duped government officials and the public without being noticed. Previously, we reported about a fake minister who managed to scam the government for six years! In fact, several fake judges, lawyers and other government officials have also been reported over the past few months.
However, this case raises even more serious questions regarding national security and government secrets.
Read More: Fake Minister Fooled Pakistani Govt Including PM House for 6 Years
According to an FIA investigation officer, Ashir Aroon, the culprit Basharat Aziz hacked the official email address of the NAB Chairman and used it to email and blackmail officials from different government departments.
FIA took action against the individual after receiving a complaint from NAB Islamabad.
The investigation agency received a tip which led to his eventual arrest, added the FIA investigation officer.
Ashir added that ‘Basharat is an IT expert and has several accounts.
He impersonated Chairman NAB to blackmail the director of Bahauddin Zakariya University, as well as several government officials into sending him money.’
The agency reports that the matter is still under investigation and they are trying to identify if Basharat was operating alone or as part of a larger group.
Serious Concerns
The incident raises some serious concerns for the Pakistani government. Hacking the official email account of a high ranking official is a grave crime and the fact that it even occurred is incomprehensible.
The whole episode has exposed weaknesses in online security for government departments. If corrective measures are not taken soon, who knows what massive national security leaks can potentially occur in the future. Not to mention, official email addresses could be used for far graver crimes than just pure blackmail.
Via Urdu VoA
FIA Phir :
Tamam Government & Semi Government Sectors K Officers K Naam Details Rank Etc Show Kare
Tak Logo Ko Pata Ho K Kun Real Hai Kun Fake !
All they know is the put the barrier all across and close road for the citizens on account of security. Don’t expect anything material from this intellect. Unless the right people are placed to do the right job.
Chalo in sahab ko tu pakar lia, but jin logon ne blackmail ho kar in ko paise diye hain zarror unki daal main kuch kala hoga tabhi tu un logon ne entertain kia. Agar sache hote tu phir kis cheez ka dar khauf?
I would suggest ke jin logon ne in sahab ko paise diye hain unki bhi list banai jae aur unko is bar real NAB chairman ek email kar dain.
Email to ho jaegi lekn ‘note’ wali.
I don’t believe it for one second. NAB Chairman didn’t get hacked.Why?
-Guy in picture doesn’t look like he has the capacity to “hack”.
-Guy in picture looks like a confession was beaten out of him.
-“Hack” is very vague, why didn’t he blackmail the chairman instead?
-So his plan was: send an email via chairman and they will send money to his account, no questions asked? Not a very good plan coming from an “IT expert”. Why didn’t he just “hack” the chairman’s bank account?
-Vague story, no references, no explanation of the term “hack”. Did he guess his password or breach through the firewall?
-The whole story sounds like a cover-up to hide the chairman’s blackmailing-via-email attempt.