Albania closes down all online govt systems after a cyber attack from outside the country.

The websites impacted by the suspension include Albania’s e-governance website e-Albania, which is similar to the MyGov website in India and is used by citizens to access government services. The e-Albania website was inaccessible on Monday as well. In addition to it, the websites of the Prime Minister’s Office and Parliament were also impacted. 

“To withstand these unprecedented and dangerous strikes, we have been forced to shut down government systems until the enemy attacks are neutralized,” the agency said in a statement to the media.

“The national agency is currently working together with the Microsoft team, the Jones Group International team, and the teams of Albanian companies in the ICT field to prevent this cyberattack from damaging or compromising the Albanian systems of information,” added the statement.

The National Agency for Information Society, AKSHI, is a controversial institution, that some accuse of misusing citizens’ data for political purposes. It has been also suspected of funneling millions of euros to pro-government media through procurements of various services.

Some social media users reported a leak of an Albanian database involving vehicle registration data. 

However, several important services, such as online tax filing, are still working, as they use separate servers.