Indian Cyber Force
 Logo used by Indian Cyber Force | |
| Abbreviation | ICF |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2022 |
| Founder | (Unknown) |
| Type | Hacker group |
| Purpose | Conduct cyberattacks against entities it considers to be against Indian interests |
| Location |
|
| Methods | DDoS attacks, Website defacements |
Official language | English, Hindi |
Indian Cyber Force (ICF) is an amateur hacktivist group from India which gained attention for conducting cyberattacks at targets which it perceives to be against Indian interests.[1][2] The group appears to be active since the year 2022. Methods of cyberattacks employed by the group include DDoS attacks, Website defacements, Data breaches. Webz.io named Indian Cyber Force among its list of 5 most active hacktivist groups of 2024.[3]
ICF makes use of Telegram and X (formerly Twitter) to post announcements related to its activities. They have claimed their original Telegram account being banned by the platform. The group's social media handles feature the tagline "Your control is Temporary, Our reach is Infinite".[4]
Mentions
[edit]In October 2023, the Computer Emergency Response Team of Europe (CERT-EU) published it's "Cyber Security Brief (October 2023)" which includes references to the ICF:
"Indian Cyber Force (ICF) allegedly disrupted access to Palestinian entities, including a Hamas website, a telecommunication company, a bank, a government e-mail service, a transportation entity, and an ecommerce website, with the prominent groups Indian Cyber Force."[5]
A member of cybersecurity team at Equinix, Will Thomas, said to the Wired (magazine):
"The Indian cyber force actually claimed to DDoS hamas.ps and webmail.gov.ps"[6]
On 23 October 2024, Le Monde, a French daily newspaper, published an article titled "The new era of hacktivism" which contains a mention to ICF:
"NoName057, Anonymous Sudan, Philippines Exodus Security, Indian Cyber Force: It has become hard to make sense of the jungle of names that have proliferated, particularly on the messaging platform Telegram. It is difficult, too, to assess their real impact."[7]
Attacks
[edit]
2023
[edit]- In September, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged the Indian government to be involved in the killing of the Khalistani leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar, which lead to a diplomatic row between India and Canada.[8] Following this incident, the Indian Cyber Force took down the Canadian military website with DDoS attacks which remained unavailable for two hours.[2][9] Other websites targeted with DDoS attacks include that of the House of Commons, Elections Canada. Multiple websites belonging to restaurants and medical clinics in Canada were defaced. The defaced websites displayed a message on a dark background with a Matrix digital rain while a music kept playing.[10]
- In October, following the October 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel, Indian Cyber Force launched attacks against Palestinian entities including Palestinian National Bank ("tnb.ps"), Palestinian Telecommunication Company ("paltel.ps"), Hamas ("hamas.ps") and "webmail.gov.ps".[11][12][13][6] Reportedly they also gained unauthorized access into more than 200 networking devices belonging to schools, hospitals and other institutions in Palestine.[14][15]
- In November, ICF launched a series of cyberattacks against Qatar, motivated by the country's decision to sentence eight former Indian Navy officers to death in an espionage case. Reportedly, they had accessed and exposed account details associated with Qatar, gained unauthorized access into multiple IP cameras and web servers, took down Qatar's eCommerce Portal by DDoS attacks for a duration of 2 hours as well as the website of Al Anees, a shopping store in Qatar. Additionally they defaced the website of a shopping store "oasis.qa"[16][17]
- In November, ICF compromised and gained unauthorized access into Pakistan Police's CCTV Camera network, revealed compromised IP addresses and login information on their social media channels. The CCTV footage viewed through that IP address showed five people in uniform, working on computers.[18][19]
2024
[edit]- In January, amid the India–Maldives diplomatic row, ICF targeted several Maldivian institutions with cyberattacks. Ministry of Homeland Security and Technology's official website was defaced with a dark background and a message conveying Maldives’ alleged “ungratefulness” despite help from India in the past.[20][21][22]
- In June, ICF claimed to have hacked more than 150 IP cameras belonging to entities including National Bank of Pakistan, Zeen (clothing store in Pakistan) and other private organizations. They released video footages of the breached cameras on their social media handles.[23]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Indian Cyber Force Hackers To Target Pakistan, China". 2023-09-06. Retrieved 2025-01-24.
- ^ a b "Pro-India Hacker Group Claims Responsibility for Cyberattack on Canadian Forces Website". The Wire. Retrieved 2025-01-24.
- ^ "The 5 Most Active Hacktivist Groups of 2024 | Webz.io". Retrieved 2025-01-24.
- ^ "Indian Cyber Force (@CyberForceX) / X". x.com. Retrieved 2025-01-24.
- ^ "Cyber Security Brief 23-11 - October 2023". CERT-EU. 6 November 2023. Archived from the original on 2024-07-01. Retrieved 2025-01-24.
- ^ a b Newman, Lily Hay. "Activist Hackers Are Racing Into the Israel-Hamas War—for Both Sides". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Retrieved 2025-01-24.
- ^ Reynaud, Florian (2024-10-23). "The new era of hacktivism". Le Monde. Archived from the original on 2024-12-19. Retrieved 2025-01-24.
- ^ Paul Tasker, John (18 September 2023). "Trudeau accuses India's government of involvement in killing of Canadian Sikh leader". cbc.ca.
- ^ "Pro-India hackers claim responsibility for disruption of Canadian Forces website". The Globe and Mail. 2023-09-27. Retrieved 2025-01-24.
- ^ Robertson, Dyland (28 September 2023). "Cyberattacks hit military, Parliament websites as India-based group targets Canada". cbc.ca.
- ^ Team, DNA Web. "Israel-Palestine conflict: How Indian hackers sunk their cyber fangs into Hamas, Palestinian national bank". DNA India. Retrieved 2025-01-24.
- ^ "Israel-Palestine Conflict: As 'Islamic' Hackers Continue Targeting Israel, Indian Hackers Take Down Official Hamas Website". Times Now. 2023-10-08. Retrieved 2025-01-24.
- ^ "Israel-Hamas War: Indian Cyber Space Caught In The Crossfire As Threat Groups Escalate Online Conflict". Outlook Business. 2023-10-20. Retrieved 2025-01-24.
- ^ Ksheerasagar, A (2025-01-23). "Re 0.85 to ₹85: Multibagger penny stock turns ₹1 lakh into ₹1 crore in three years | Stock Market News". mint. Archived from the original on 2025-01-24. Retrieved 2025-01-24.
- ^ "More than 200 Palestinian Network Devices have been Hacked". x.com. 10 October 2023.
- ^ Livemint (2023-11-08). "Indian hackers launch cyber attack on Qatar in response to Espionage case | Today News". mint. Archived from the original on 2024-09-13. Retrieved 2025-01-24.
- ^ Adnal, Madhuri (2023-11-10). "Hackers Launch Cyber Attack On Qatar In Retaliation For Former Navy Officer's Execution". One India. Retrieved 2025-01-24.
- ^ "Hacking Alert: Indian Hackers Claim to Crack Pakistani Police CCTV – Exclusive Inside Look!". Times Now. 2023-11-15. Archived from the original on 2024-08-03. Retrieved 2025-01-24.
- ^ "Indian Cyber Force Claims Cyber Intrusion into Pakistan's Police's CCTV Camera network". www.newsbharati.com. 16 November 2023. Archived from the original on 2025-01-24. Retrieved 2025-01-24.
- ^ Mohamed, Naizak (23 February 2024). "Home Ministry's website hacked". SunOnline International. Archived from the original on 2024-09-15. Retrieved 2025-01-24.
- ^ "Cyberattacks On The Maldivian Agencies Amid Diplomatic Strain". 2024-01-12. Retrieved 2025-01-24.
- ^ "Maldives' Home Ministry website hacked over 'anti-India actions': Report". Business Today. 2024-02-25. Retrieved 2025-01-24.
- ^ "Pakistan over 150+ cameras have been hacked". x.com. 19 June 2024.