'This is untrue': Mindef refutes Singaporean hacker's claim that he hacked into its systems

SINGAPORE - The Ministry of Defence (Mindef) has refuted a claim by a Singaporean hacker who said he had hacked into the ministry's systems.

In a Facebook post on Monday (Sept 11), the ministry rebuffed a claim that Mr James Raj Arokiasamy made on Plan B, a podcast programme on Singapore current affairs.

On the Sept 6 podcast, Mr James Raj said he had "hacked into Mindef and into a lot of government sectors", and claimed that his actions had caused embarrassment for the government.

The ministry said: "This is untrue. Mindef's systems were neither hacked nor compromised as claimed."

It added that it would continue to "stay vigilant and maintain a stringent and proactive approach in detecting and defending against potential cyber threats".

Mr James Raj, who also goes by the pseudonym 'the Messiah', had previously run afoul of the law for hacking into the computer servers of various organisations.

He was jailed for four years and eight months in 2015 for hacking into the websites of at least seven organisations, including the PAP Community Foundation, Ang Mo Kio Town Council and City Harvest Church in 2013.

Many of the targeted websites were defaced with taunts or threats.

The prosecution then had called the case the most serious case of hacking brought before a court here.

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.

ALSO READ: 'Clear signs SMS is illegitimate': Ong Ye Kung warns of Healthier SG scam messages, says MOH has filed police report