The National Police arrested a person last Tuesday in the province of Granada who allegedly published “personal data related to members of different sensitive State institutions on various internet portals,” according to the Directorate General of Police this Monday in a press release. Among the affected institutions are Incibe (National Cybersecurity Institute), the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the National Security Council, as well as several members of the National Police, the Civil Guard, the State Attorney General’s Office, the Ministry of Finance, and the Tax Agency. After locating the detainee, several officers searched his home, where they found “various computer and technological material” that is already being analyzed by specialists.
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The Investigative Court number 22 of Madrid is leading the investigation, which began after detecting the massive dissemination of the data. “It generated an immediate risk to the safety and integrity of those affected and the institutions themselves,” the press release states. Given the seriousness of the facts, the National Police indicates in its statement that an “urgent” operation was activated to locate and arrest the alleged perpetrator.
The police investigation focuses, according to the police, “on the growing risk posed by mass exposure campaigns of personal data on the Internet, especially when they affect members of strategic State institutions.” These practices, the police statement emphasizes, are known in cyber jargon as doxing and may be accompanied by threats and extortion against public officials and sensitive organizations.
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The National Police highlights that the speed with which they activated the arrest and search operation was “especially relevant,” since “the nature of the information disseminated and the potential impact on the operational security of the affected institutions” was very serious. The operation remains open to clarify if other people are involved and, if so, to dismantle the network of profiles that have participated “in this targeting campaign.”
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