Reveal Hackers of Activists’ Gadgets

KOMPAS/KURNIA YUNITA RAHAYU

Screenshot of the savekpk.org page. Hacking an anti-corruption Whatsapp account includes a message with a link to the page.

Hackers have yet again targeted activists’ cell phones with the intent to hijack their messaging accounts to spread certain content.

The latest case targeted Ravio Patra, a public policy researcher and law activist. On the afternoon of Tuesday, 22 April 2020, when he tried to access his WhatsApp, the following message appeared: "Your account is registered on another phone." After this was a request to input a one-time password (OTP), which is usually sent to confirm changes to WhatsApp accounts.

Not long after that, between 1:19 p.m. and 2:05 p.m., Ravio received phone calls from two unknown numbers and two foreign numbers with the country codes for Malaysia and the United States. After that, an unknown party used Ravio’s WhatsApp account to send hoaxes that caused looting and burning of property. Ravio was briefly detained by police, who suspected that he was responsible for sending the provocative messages.

This case certainly cannot be left unattended, and the police need to immediately uncover the perpetrators, including the masterminds behind them.

This case certainly cannot be left unattended, and the police need to immediately uncover the perpetrators, including the masterminds behind them. Left unchecked, such account hijacking incidents will certainly set a bad precedent, threaten democracy, and even endanger the state.

Kompas

An illustration of hacked content.

We recall that, in the past year alone, around 30 activists experienced account hijacking that used similar methods. To date, however, the police have not discovered the perpetrators or masterminds behind such attacks.

Who are these hackers acting against the activists? What is their motive? It is truly a crime if there are parties that are encouraging mass unrest, especially at a time when this country has been hit by a viral outbreak and all elements of society and government are exerting every effort to overcome it.

The Coalition Against Criminalization and Case Engineering (Katrok), which groups together community leaders and representatives of civil society organizations, has urged the police to immediately investigate this case and fully disclose the perpetrators.

If they have any problems tracking the perpetrators’ digital footprints, the police can cooperate with the service provider or telecommunications companies.

The perpetrators must be arrested and tried immediately. We certainly believe in the National Police’s capabilities and dedication to investigating this case down to its roots. If they have any problems tracking the perpetrators’ digital footprints, the police can cooperate with the service provider or telecommunications companies.

Hijacking a messaging or social media account is not difficult. The Kompas investigative report of 2 March 2020 found that account hijacking usually begins with stealing OTP codes through a variety of deceptive means that target unwitting users. The victims have ranged from politicians to celebrities, and to ojol (on-demand motorcycle taxi) drivers.

Kompas

Chairperson of the Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI) Asrorun Niam Sholeh gave a statement to the media after reporting a case of hacking of the KPAI web as a state institution by someone suspected of being related to resistance to child protection efforts at the National Police Headquarters Bareskirm, Jakarta, Tuesday (3/5/2016).

To prevent other, similar cases, the government also needs to continue to educate its citizens to be more aware of various forms of digital fraud, including account hijacking. The police also need to protect the public against hacking incidents. Do not let hackers live freely to spread like a virus.