Bangladesh election app suffers cyber attack from Ukraine, Germany: Official

After a probe, it was found that there was a cyber attack from hackers from Ukraine and Germany on the app.

Bangladesh Election Commission on Sunday said hackers from Ukraine and Germany carried out a cyber attack on its app, slowing down its functioning during the 12th general election in the country, according to a media report.

An official brings ballot box for counting casted votes after voting is timed out at a polling station, during the 12th general election in Dhaka, Bangladesh.(Reuters)

Speaking to the media, Bangladesh Election Commission (EC) Secretary Md Jahangir Alam said that it had created a mobile application called "Smart Election Management BD" which provides real-time voting information. However, voters during the polls complained since Sunday morning that the EC app was not operating properly, the Dhaka Tribune website reported.

After a probe, it was found that there was a cyber attack from hackers from Ukraine and Germany on the app.

"A cyber attack has been carried out on the app 'Smart Election Management BD' of the Election Commission (EC) from Ukraine and Germany," he was quoted as saying in the report.

Alam said that the EC app slowed down after the cyber attack from Ukraine and Germany.

"Our team has been working round the clock to fix the issue. Although the app is functioning slowly, it's still working," he said.

The EC secretary also said that the news of the app being developed at a cost of Bangladeshi Taka Tk 21 crore (INR 15.98 crore) is incorrect.

The app is only a part of a six-year project worth Tk 21 crore. The project is in its first year, and barely Tk 8 crore has been spent so far, he added.

Voting for the 12th general election in Bangladesh was held on Sunday amid sporadic violence and a boycott by the main opposition party BNP and its allies.