“The group stated, ‘Your actions will cost you a heavy price,’ in a series of ominous messages on the messaging app. They shared screenshots of server login credentials, employee names and details, as well as the personal details of Tirana residents.
Since 2013, Albania has been the base of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran, also known as Mojahedin-e-Khalq, or MEK, after the U.S. government requested a camp be established to host the exiled opposition group involved in the overthrow of the Shah of Iran and clashes with the Revolutionary Guard.
A special-purpose camp was constructed in Manëz and visited by U.S. officials, including then-Vice President Mike Pence. In 2023, Albanian police raided the camp following information about a unit of the Iranian Quds Force operating there and attempting to subvert it.
The capital’s website remained down Saturday afternoon, and the server outage might disrupt transportation services, passport and license issuance, as well as expose sensitive personal data of nearly 800,000 Tirana residents.
Edmond Liçaj, a cybersecurity expert, commented, ‘The past 10 to 12 years have shown that public institutions are easily hackable and that the Albanian government has not appreciated the issue of cybersecurity at all.’
Liçaj noted that Albania has a ‘criminally low’ sensitivity to the seriousness of personal data leaks. Such leaks are still considered mere ‘routine annoyances,’ despite the government’s push to digitalize services as the leading EU membership candidate in the Balkans.”













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