Prime Minister Edi Rama has apologized for the leak of over 630,000 people’s personal data, including Albanian and foreign citizens who are registered to pay tax and social security in the country.
On Wednesday and Thursday, two Excel files started circulating online that show the name, ID number/passport number, phone number, employer, position, and salary of thousands of employed adults in the country. It is believed they have originated from the offices of the Social Insurance Institute of Albania.
Rama said “according to a preliminary analysis, it looks more like an internal infiltration rather than an outside cyberattack.”
“I have one idea that this was done to create confusion and animosity between people and the government,” he said.
This is the second such leak in less than a year. In April, a database of over 910,000 voters data including name, phone number, job, voting preference, and other notes and observations about them was leaked. Rama did not apologize or accept any responsibility for this leak, despite its gravity.
