Off the wire
• Merkel calls for peaceful solution to conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh  • 8 mln Bangladesh people suffer from diabetes  • Ukraine mulls ban on oil product imports from Russia  • Troops kill 2 militants in separate gunfights in Indian-controlled Kashmir  • China's new permanent representative to UN at Geneva formally takes office  • U.S. stocks tick up ahead of Fed minutes  • LME base metals mostly increase on Wednesday  • Former airline officials stand trial for graft  • Visitors got stuck mid-air on Singapore's rollercoaster  • Roundup: Indonesia reacts to forest conservation criticism by U.S. actor DiCaprio  
You are here: 　 Home

Turkey launches probe into massive personal data leak

Xinhua, April 7, 2016 Adjust font size:

The Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office Wednesday launched a probe into reports of a massive personal information leak that affects nearly 50 million Turkish citizens, Daily News reported.

"The number (almost 50 million) is close to the number of Turkish voters. This information about voters is also shared with political parties, and it should be examined whether or not they are the source of the leak. All necessary investigations have been launched," Turkish Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag told reporters on Wednesday.

"These reports have surfaced a number of times before. One also emerged in 2010," Bozdag said, adding that a new law concerning the protection of personal data, which will go into effect after the approval from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Earlier in the day, Turkish Transport and Communications Minister Binali Yildirim told media that the leak is part of a "perception management operation" conducted by the "parallel structure," he said, referring to the Gulen movement, the sympathizers of U.S.-based Islamic scholar Fethullah Gulen, a friend-turned-foe of the government.

Reports of a fresh data leak began to come out on Tuesday, after news focus on hackers who posted a database online that included the personal information of nearly 50 million Turkish nationals.

A website, in which a surnames-based search of leaked data is possible, was still available as of Wednesday. The information accessible on the website included data such as ID numbers, addresses, birth-dates and names. Endit