Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) officials said that Bank Islami reported that Rs 2.6 million was stolen through international payment cards on October 27. However, such transactions have stopped ever since
Islamabad: Thousands of bank accounts were hacked last month in Pakistan and millions of rupees stolen, said authorities on Wednesday.
Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) officials said that Bank Islami reported that Rs 2.6 million was stolen through international payment cards on October 27. However, such transactions have stopped ever since.
Also, a former chief scientist of Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) said that Rs 3 million was stolen from his account. He has approached the Supreme Court on Monday.
The cybercrime officials said that a probe has been launched.
It is estimated that details of around 8,000 customers from about a dozen banks were compromised on October 27 and 28 — the two days when the cyber-attack was supposedly launched.
“Data of most Pakistani banks was stolen,” FIA Cybercrimes director Mohammad Shoaib told media.
However, another bank official said that it was still early to say how many people lost their money due to data hacking.
"Banks are trying to cover up as it will erode their credibility. The account holders are not coming up to complain as they are being compensated by the banks. So we do not know how many people exactly have been affected," he said.
Meanwhile, State Bank of Pakistan ordered the affected banks to stop making international transactions on credit cards and debit cards.
Recently, Pakistan was also jolted by a money laundering scheme, which has already affected dozens in the past few weeks.
Bank accounts in poor residents' names are filled with cash before the entire amount is siphoned off outside the country.
Pakistan's new prime minister, Imran Khan, has vowed to quash rampant corruption and recover billions that have been sent out of the country in this laundering frenzy.
"This is your stolen money... It was stolen on public contracts... and transferred into these accounts, then laundered abroad... I will spare no corrupt man in this country,” Khan said during a televised address to the nation.
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