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The Canadian branch of Amnesty International, a non-governmental organization that campaigns to end abuses of human rights, has disclosed that it has detected a security breach. The breach was first identified on October 5, when the NGO spotted suspicious activity on its IT infrastructure.
Cybersecurity experts were hired to investigate the attack and secure the NGO’s systems right after the breach was detected. It is currently believed that a threat group sponsored by the Chinese state is behind the attack.
The NGO’s Statement
Amnesty International issued a press release on its official website on December 5th announcing the cyberattack.
Amnesty International Canada engaged a highly skilled team of forensic investigators and cyber security experts who took immediate action to protect the organization’s systems and investigate the source of the attack.
Preliminary results of the investigation indicate that a “digital security breach was perpetrated using tools and techniques associated with specific advanced persistent threat groups (APTs)”, reads the press release.
Forensic experts established that a threat group sponsored by the Chinese state was likely behind the attack. The conclusion comes based “on the nature of the targeted information as well as the observed tools and behaviors, which are consistent with those associated with Chinese cyberespionage threat groups.”
As an organization advocating for human rights globally, we are very aware that we may be the target of state-sponsored attempts to disrupt or surveil our work. These will not intimidate us and the security and privacy of our activists, staff, donors, and stakeholders remain our utmost priority.
Ketty Nivyabandi, Secretary General, Amnesty International Canada (Source)
No Evidence of Extracted Data
According to BleepingComputer, the investigation is yet to discover evidence of exfiltrated data from the NGO’s systems. Amnesty International Canada reported the incident to the relevant law enforcement authorities, as well as its staff, donors, and stakeholders.
“Our work to investigate and denounce these acts has never been more critical and relevant. We will continue to shine a light on human rights violations wherever they occur and to denounce the use of digital surveillance by governments to stifle human rights.”
Given Amnesty International’s reports and analysis on the ongoing violations of human rights committed by the Chinese government, the attack is not shocking.
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Cristian is a Content Editor & Creator at Heimdal®, where he developed a deep understanding of the digital threat landscape. His style resonates with both technical and non-technical readers, proof being in his skill of communicating cybersecurity norms effectively, in an easy-to-understand manner.
