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The government of Malawi has stopped giving out passports after a cyber-attack on the immigration service’s computer network.
President Chakwera informed members of parliament about a significant breach of national security involving the department being targeted. He said the hackers demanded a ransom but the president said the government won’t meet their demands rather working to solve the problem.
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“We are not in the business of appeasing criminals with public money, nor are we in the business of negotiating with those who attack our country,” he said on Wednesday.
Many young people in Malawi are looking to migrate for job opportunities, leading to high demand for passports.
Mr. Chakwera stated that he gave the immigration department three weeks to come up with a temporary solution and start issuing passports again, until they regain control of the system.
Malawi has not been issuing passports for the past two weeks due to a technical glitch.
On Wednesday, Mr. Chakwera disclosed that the immigration system was “hacked” but did not mention who the suspected hackers were.
No further details have been provided regarding the cyber-attack and its potential impact on personal data security. Malawians want to know why there are constant delays in issuing travel documents.
This is not the first time that there has been a suspension in recent years. People without a valid passport cannot get a new one and therefore cannot travel.
