[UPDATED] My Telegram account was hacked by irresponsible individual: Ismail Sabri

KUALA LUMPUR – Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s Telegram account has been compromised by hackers.

In a recent Twitter post, Ismail Sabri called on the public to disregard any messages received from the account and report the matter to officials.

Perhatian: Akaun Telegram peribadi saya telah digodam oleh individu tidak bertanggungjawab. Mohon laporkan kepada pihak berkuasa dan abaikan sebarang mesej yang diterima daripada akaun berkenaan.

— Ismail Sabri (@IsmailSabri60) August 8, 2022

“My private Telegram account has been hacked by an irresponsible individual. Please ignore messages from the account and report it to the authorities,” he tweeted.

Netizens on the social media platform however did not have much empathy to spare for the prime minister, with many questioning how protected citizens actually are, when his personal account is not spared from hackers.

“The country’s digital defence system is so weak. Even Malaysia’s number one official was hacked, what more us regular folk,” Twitter user @MDaudYusof lamented.

User @techsupremo also had a bone to pick with Ismail Sabri over the latter’s decision to publicly announce the hacking. 

“The leader of a nation, whose account has been hacked, telling the people on Twitter about the matter. Shouldn’t he keep the matter on the low and let authorities investigate the cause of the incident since this is a matter of national security? 

“What level in hell is this kind of crisis management?”

Some users also elected to make light of the situation by poking fun at Ismail Sabri, suggesting in jest that he might have left his digital device at an unprotected location. 

“Did he leave his phone at the mamak restaurant? Hahaha,” user @bluppy89 said while user @9dean queried if the prime minister had logged in to his Telegram account at a cybercafe. 

Meanwhile, lawyer and activist Michelle Yesudas took aim at the messaging application, pointing out that this is not the first instance where the software has apparently inconvenienced its users.  

“Pity. Let’s be honest, Telegram has been consistently letting everyone down, from women, people from marginalised communities and now our prime minister,” she posted. 

In 2020, a Telegram group called V2K was exposed for circulating intimate photos of women and attempting to sell child pornography files for US$75 (RM311). 

Last year, the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) was forced to temporarily suspend its official Twitter account after it was “hacked by an irresponsible individual.” 

However, the original holder of the account had later come forward to own up to the string of profanity-laden tirades dating back to 2014, claiming that he had sold the account for around RM1,300 circa 2015 or 2014. – The Vibes, August 8, 2022