Cyber Threats

‘Pahalgam’ Face-Off Hits Cyberspace: Pakistan Hackers Claim Breach of Indian Defence Systems

By Omkar Santosh Mahajan

In what could arguably be seen as another alarming sign of India-Pakistan tension, a cyber attack perpetrated by a group that has reportedly called itself the Pakistan Cyber Force has breached sensitive systems associated with Indian defence infrastructure, officials said on Wednesday. The Military Engineering Services (MES) and the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (MP-IDSA) have been affected, security sources said.

The Breach: Targeting the Core of Indian Defence

This is the most serious cyber attack in recent times targeting institutions directly connected with the Ministry of Defence, sources in India’s defence establishment say. That, in contrast to earlier attacks that mostly targeted educational or autonomous websites, targeted core military infrastructure.

More than 10 GB of data has been stolen from > 600 users>, including > login credentials and personal information of Indian defence personnel, the group said in a post on social media site X (formerly Twitter) which included threatening caption:

“Hack your security is illusion. MES data owned.”

Government Reaction: Systems Taken Offline

A website of Armoured Vehicles Nigam Limited (AVNL) – one of the most important Defence PSUs — was taken offline and hacker reportedly tried to add Pakistani images to photos of Indian military tanks, an obviously dangerous form of cyber psychological warfare.

More details of a full security audit are now being carried out and preliminary findings suggest valuable data on defence equipment was also accessed.

 Cyber Surveillance on High Alert

The Indian Cyber Coordination Committee (ICCC) and other top cyber security agencies are also keeping an eye on the situation,  sources told ANI. “The attack vectors are traced to Pakistani IP sources, ” they added. This what previous cyber operations in Pakistan perpetrated by state-sponsored or state-tolerated hacking groups, they said..
A government official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said:
“The scale and breadth of this attack pose grave national security concerns — it’s not just about sites anymore — this is cyber war. “

What’s at Risk?

• Login credentials of MES and MP-IDSA personnel
• Names, emails, and possibly encrypted communications
• Institutional and operational blueprints
• Reputational damage and psychological disruption

Final Word: India’s Digital Borders Are Being Tested
This latest attack signals a shift from conventional conflict to digital confrontation. With the lines between cyber criminals and state actors increasingly blurred, India must enhance its zero-trust architecture, threat detection systems, and response protocols.

As one cybersecurity expert put it, “we’re not defending borders anymore. We’re defending bytes. ”

India’s cyber defences need to be re-visited as quickly as the attacks against it – because next war may not be rocketed by a missile but may be won with a click.