Incident Overview

On Thursday, a potential data leak at the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) came to light, prompting concerns regarding the integrity of sensitive data. Cybercriminals are reportedly offering around 3.8 GB of allegedly stolen data on the dark web. In response, the IDEV system, an important digital data collection tool, has been taken offline as a precautionary measure. The Federal Statistical Office confirmed that security authorities have been notified and that the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) is currently investigating the situation.

Ongoing Investigation

Destatis has commented that there are "no confirmed findings" to suggest that cybercriminals caused this data leak at this stage. The security authorities are actively collaborating with the office to determine the extent of the breach and to gather relevant information for further action.

Election Integrity Assurance

Ruth Brand, the President of the Federal Statistical Office, also serves as the Federal Returning Officer for the upcoming federal elections. In light of the incident, an official spokesperson assured that the IT systems responsible for statistical functions and those related to election processes are technically independent of one another. Preparations for the national elections scheduled for 2025 are said to be progressing without disruption.

Data Collection and Reporting

The affected IDEV system, which is responsible for the regular submission of statistical reports to the federal and state statistical offices, has seen its reporting deadlines suspended until the situation is clarified. Furthermore, there are currently no indications that the reporting systems used by the federal states have been compromised; however, as a precaution, the states are also taking their systems offline until further clarification is provided. The Federal Statistical Office continues to maintain public access to statistical information through its website.

In summary, while the discovery of a data leak raises significant concerns, officials have emphasized that there is no immediate effect on forthcoming elections, ensuring both data security and integrity are maintained.

This was originally reported by Heise.