A new cyber attack shakes Portugal.

After an attack on the Portuguese airline TAP, the hacker group "Ragnar Locker" published personal data of the Portuguese Prime Minister António Costa on the "Dark Web".

President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa is also affected by the leak.

Hans Christian Roessler

Political correspondent for the Iberian Peninsula and the Maghreb based in Madrid.

  • Follow I follow

A "citizen" pointed out that private information about him is accessible on the Internet, the head of state's office said.

According to press reports, the heads of the SIS secret service and the Republican National Guard (GNR) were victims of the leak, as were several parliamentarians, including the chairman of the right-wing populist Chega party.

In total, according to the hacker group, information about around 1.5 million customers was disclosed during the attack at the end of August.

According to TAP, this includes names, mobile phone and ID numbers, date of birth and email addresses, but not bank details and credit card numbers.

There is talk in the press of a second set of business documents from TAP containing "sensitive data" on other airlines, including Lufthansa.

Supposedly further remote access to TAP

The hackers claim they still have remote access to the TAP systems.

TAP "did nothing" to protect customers.

Neither the attackers nor the company let it be known whether financial claims were made.

TAP hits the attack in the middle of a crisis.

After an initial privatization failed, the government kept TAP alive during the corona pandemic with 2.5 billion euros.

In 2023 she wants to sell at least 50 percent of her shares.

Lufthansa is also among those interested.

Just a few days ago, the Attorney General's Office confirmed a cyber attack on the General Staff of the Armed Forces.

According to American intelligence, hundreds of secret NATO documents have been stolen and offered for sale on the dark web.

Two years ago, Ragnar Locker targeted the energy supplier EDP in Portugal.

At that time, a ransom of ten million euros was said to have been demanded.

Only technical precautions had prevented it from getting dark in Portugal, it was said at the time.