ISLAMABAD: A spokesman for the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication refuted on Monday a news report appearing in a section of the press about hacking of some secret documents of the National Telecommunication Corporation (NTC).

The report had claimed that the network had been hacked by implanting ‘SECONDDATE Malware’ — a malicious code used to monitor or control a network.

In a statement, the ministry’s spokesman said: “NTC Green Line exchanges are secure and not prone to hacking. The Green Line communication network is a dedicated, standalone hardware-intensive system with no connectivity with internet cloud.”

The exchanges, the spokesman said, were connected with a secure fibre link, having no link with the public switching system of the NTC or any other telecom operator.

“Therefore, the possibility of any intrusion on main communication lines under question is ruled out and accessing these exchanges through internet or implanting any malware is extremely remote.”

However, the spokesman said, cyber security was a serious global subject and technical measures for thwarting cyber attacks were continuously being developed.

He said protective measures were in place and the NTC was constantly adopting effective counter-hacking measures to avoid any security breach.

Published in Dawn, August 23rd, 2016