Uzbekistan's Minister of Digital Technologies, Sherzod Shermatov, has addressed recent reports concerning an alleged data leak affecting 27 million citizens' personal information. While he did not confirm the actual breach, supposedly orchestrated by a group of self-proclaimed “ethical hackers” known as Butterfly, he issued a strong warning that without urgent and decisive measures, such data leaks could indeed materialize.

The minister emphasized that as investments are directed toward the development of artificial intelligence, allocating adequate funds to defend against related cyber threats is critically important. He argued that neglecting these security expenditures would only compound the risks, leaving state and private systems increasingly vulnerable to malicious activities.

Shermatov referenced recent global cybersecurity incidents, including the massive security breach involving the Binance crypto exchange, while noting the accusations leveled by the Butterfly group against Uzbekistan's state cybersecurity personnel. The group supposedly claimed they did not breach systems for criminal purposes, but rather intended to demonstrate existing vulnerabilities, subsequently publishing the minister's own phone number.

Highlighting the technological shift, the minister stated that artificial intelligence has revolutionized the detection of vulnerabilities in outdated information systems. He urged all state, non-governmental, and commercial organizations to continuously audit their systems and remediate any weaknesses in a timely manner to prevent potential compromises.

Concluding his remarks, Shermatov recommended that IT specialists closely monitor threat alerts issued by the State Security Service's Cybersecurity Center and the UzCERT service. He warned that failing to prioritize and adequately fund cybersecurity alongside ongoing digitalization will only cause threats to multiply exponentially.

Source: www.gazeta.uz