A Sudanese hacker group has claimed that they have taken down a number of Kenyan websites including key government sites like e-Citizen and top companies to protest the alleged Kenya's meddling in the country's affairs.
Statements posted by Sudan Annonymous have claimed that their push is part of retaliation to Kenya, though the group has not substantiated how the government has meddled in the troubled country.
Government websites offering services to Kenyans like e-Citizen and NTSA have experienced downtimes since July 24, affecting applications and renewal of Driving Licences, birth certificates, business registrations, marriage certificates, passports, and certificates of good conduct among others.
A source who spoke on condition of anonymity to Kenyans.co.ke confirmed that the hackers targeted a number of government websites and blue-chip firms including a leading media outlet over claims that President William Ruto's government is meddling in Sudan's internal affairs.
"The attack began on Monday, July 24, when these groups managed to breach these websites and portals. We are actually assisting to restore," the source who works for a leading Israeli cybersecurity company told Kenyans.co.ke.
The source confirmed that government websites have been the most vulnerable as most do not have proper web security buffers.
Private companies that were affected by the series of hacks managed to restore their websites within hours, minimising service interruptions.
"The breach has obviously caused inconveniences for many Kenyan citizens who rely on the services. The government is working with experts to improve the security of the websites to prevent future attacks," the source stated.
As a team of experts works to restore normalcy on e-Citizen, millions of Kenya risk missing over 5,000 government services that have been shifted online.
The government-to-citizen (G2C) online platform was launched in 2014 and has been targeted by hacking groups on numerous occasions.
"This page can't be displayed. Contact support for additional information. The incident ID is N/A," this has been the message on the e-Citizen page over the last three days.
The Sudan Annonymous Hacker group has also claimed that they have managed to access sensitive data, including the personal information of Kenyan citizens.
The Government of Kenya has not confirmed the extent of the breach, but sources close to the operation stated that experts are working to restore the portal and investigating the incident.
However, the Sudanese Annonyous Hacker Group has not made any demands, as is always the case in many instances of technical breaches.
The hackers' attacks follow a video of a Sudanese general daring President William Ruto to war. Sudanese General Yasir Al-Atta has claimed without evidence that Ruto has ties and is supporting Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
The Kenyan government has denied the allegations against him and has noted that he is committed to finding a peaceful resolution to the conflict in Sudan.
The conflict in Sudan has been ongoing since 2019, when the country's former president, Omar al-Bashir, was overthrown in a popular uprising. The conflict has caused tension and displacement and has led to the deaths of thousands of people.
