Garda Regains Control of Official X Accounts After Cryptocurrency Hack

Incident Overview

An Garda Síochána has confirmed it has regained control of social media accounts after a hack which saw “unauthorised access” to two official profiles on X. The accounts @GardaInfo and @GardaTraffic were taken over in a breach related to cryptocurrency on Wednesday night and members of the public were warned not to interact with them.

Breach Details

The @GardaTraffic and @GardaInfo accounts on X, formerly Twitter, removed some branding and started publishing scores of posts about a cryptocurrency from Wednesday night. All posts on both accounts have been removed by the platform, but were seen by thousands of people while live.

Investigation

On Thursday evening, gardaí confirmed they had regained control of the accounts but they will remain inactive while the Garda National Cyber Crime Bureau carry out its investigations.

Response

The Garda said the breach was only on X and that there was “no unauthorised access to any Garda systems and that there is no loss or impact on any Garda controlled data”. The location on both accounts was changed to Amsterdam, the Netherlands, but the @GardaTraffic account, which has more than 600,000 followers, still claims it is the Garda account for traffic and road safety updates.

Expert Analysis

Cybersecurity expert Brian Honan said the incident was “embarrassing” for the Garda as the organisation tasked with tackling crime instead fell victim to it. However, he said the “hijacking” of corporate accounts is not unusual as attackers often seek out high-profile accounts with trusted names and a large amount of followers.

Civil Liberties Concerns

Olga Cronin, head of policy at the Irish Council of Civil Liberties, said any hack of a State agency or body’s systems or online accounts is extremely worrying. “An Garda Síochána is entrusted with extremely sensitive and personal information, and their social media accounts could contain valuable personal information via direct messages for example.

Investigation and Response

The incident highlights the importance of secure collection, storage, use and deletion of data – whether it is gathered through social media, tech like body-worn cameras or people walking into a Garda station to report a crime – are essential to An Garda Síochána’s operation and all of our safety. “An Garda Síochána and X should explain to the public what has happened as soon as is practicable, in order to address public concern.”