Special Correspondent: Ahead of the 13th National Parliament elections, the personal information of at least 14,000 journalists has been exposed due to a serious flaw in the online system launched by the Election Commission (EC). Everything from photos, signatures, national identity cards to media-related information was exposed for about two hours. The applications made by journalists on the EC website included photos, signatures, national identity cards, office identity cards, a list of journalists approved by media organizations, and information related to the organization. Tanvir Hasan Joha, prosecutor and IT expert at the International Crimes Tribunal, considers the matter as direct evidence of the irresponsibility of state institutions. He told the media, how does a statutory institution launch a system that does not have data protection, access control, or basic security testing? The most important question is whether the personal information of these 14,000 journalists has been copied or has it been passed on to a third party. Tanvir Hasan Joha said that those who talk big about journalists’ data protection, digital security, and personal privacy are actually the ones who hand over this information to the most insecure hands. The EC had changed the rules for issuing cards to journalists and observers ahead of the 13th National Parliament elections and referendum. This is the first time that the organization has made it mandatory to apply online (pr.ecs.gov.bd) for journalists to get cards and car stickers. However, in view of the demands of journalists, the EC withdrew from this decision last Thursday. They decided to issue cards manually. However, before the EC changed its decision, about 14,000 journalists applied to their online system to get cards and stickers. After 4 pm on Saturday, the information of journalists who applied on the EC website suddenly became public. If you search with admin instead of user in the website URL, you can see the complete application and information. Along with the list appearing on the website’s home page, the applicant’s name, NID number, mobile number, and the option to open the complete application came up. However, in the evening, the website could no longer be accessed. Akhtar Ahmed, Senior Secretary of the Election Commission Secretariat, told the media on his mobile phone around 9 pm today, “I am not aware of the matter. I worked till 2:30 pm today. Nothing was known about it then. Since the afternoon, a few people have called to inquire about this matter. It would not be right to comment without knowing what information and how it was leaked. I will find out tomorrow when I go to the office.” IT experts are emphasizing on proper security testing and verification of sensitive data protection mechanisms before launching any digital system in state management. BM Mainul Hossain, Director of the Institute of Information Technology, Dhaka University, told the media that the digital system basically runs on trust and confidence. If that trust is not created in state institutions, then the people will become disgusted with the digital system. This will threaten the entire digital transformation process.
Views: 8
