Ransomware Attack: Pune District Smart City Hit In Cyber Attack, Servers Maintained By Tech Mahindra Damaged

The first reported cyber attack on a smart city project in India has left everyone in the cyber security domain and administration stunned. Although a ransomware attack on a Pune district’s smart city project resulted in no data loss, Tech Mahindra estimates that the cost of restoring server infrastructure and improving security standards would be Rs 5 crore.

Tech Mahindra, which is in charge of the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) Smart City project in Pune, has stated that they faced a ransomware attack in late February. The tech giant said that the situation was thoroughly assessed, leading to this conclusion.

The ransomware attack on the server infrastructure of the PCMC Smart City project appears to have occurred at the end of February. Following which on March 9, Tech Mahindra filed a FIR with the Nigdi Police Station near Pune, claiming that the threat actors demanded the ransom to be paid in Bitcoin.

According to an ET report, Nilkanth Poman, joint CEO of the PCMC Smart City, said that the attackers were not paid a ransom. However, the ransomware attack on the Pune district’s smart city project will result in some financial loss as the affected server infrastructure is rebuilt.

According to Sujit Baksi, president of corporate affairs at Tech Mahindra, the ransomware attack has infected 25 servers of the PCMC Smart City project, which must now be rebuilt “along with the introduction of a robust security system.” He goes on to say that Tech Mahindra’s damage estimate of Rs 5 crore is for these specific efforts and excludes any costs incurred due to data loss or other material costs associated with the project. The servers are also said to be fully recoverable, and the project will not suffer any further business consequences as a result of the attack.

While the company has filed a complaint, with a loss estimate of Rs 5 crore, Municipal Commissioner Rajesh Patil has stated that the civic body will not compensate the company. According to the civic body, there was no information leakage that caused any damage.

“We are shocked by Tech Mahindra’s police complaint,” PCMC IT Officer Neelkanth Poman said. We are optimistic that they will be able to restore the system. Every kind of loss is unjustifiable. The PCMC would not compensate the firm in any way. We’ve notified them of this.”

Ransomware is still the most prevalent form of cyber attack aimed at government agencies around the world. Various states in the United States have seen massive ransomware attacks aimed at undermining official infrastructure in order to play up risks, and India has recently seen an increase in the number of cyber attacks.