CS Kabogo Gives Update on the President’s Hacked Website
The Ministry of Information, Communications and the Digital Economy has assured Kenyans that no sensitive government information was exposed following the cyberattack that targeted the official website of the President.
Speaking on Saturday, July 18, ICT Cabinet Secretary William Kabogo confirmed that the government was fully aware of the security incident and that emergency cybersecurity measures were activated immediately after the breach was detected.
He said the relevant government agencies responded quickly to contain the attack and prevent any possible damage to critical digital infrastructure.
Newshub.co.ke was the first media outlet to report the incident after its journalists discovered that the official presidential website, president.go.ke, had been compromised.
Instead of the normal government content, the homepage had been replaced with a ransom message directed at President William Ruto, raising concerns about the security of government websites.
Kabogo explained that the ICT Authority immediately activated its established cybersecurity incident response procedures as soon as the attack was identified.
According to the Cabinet Secretary, experts isolated the affected systems and temporarily restricted public access to the website to allow cybersecurity teams to conduct forensic investigations and safely restore the platform.
“As a precautionary measure, access to the Presidential website was temporarily restricted to facilitate containment, forensic analysis and restoration efforts,” Kabogo said while updating the public on the situation.
The ICT CS also moved to calm public fears, emphasizing that early investigations had not found any indication that hackers had gained access to classified government information or sensitive records.
He maintained that the incident appeared to be limited to the website itself and had not affected other critical government systems.
Kabogo further stated that there was currently no evidence showing that confidential data had been stolen, altered or leaked during the cyberattack.
He assured Kenyans that government digital services continued operating normally despite the temporary disruption caused by the hacking incident.
“At this time, there is no evidence of unauthorised access to sensitive data, data exfiltration, or loss of information. Government systems and digital services remain secure and operational,” the CS added.
His statement came only hours after the official presidential website was hacked and defaced with messages targeting President William Ruto.
Visitors who attempted to access the website were met with offensive messages instead of the usual official State House information, indicating that unauthorized individuals had gained control of the homepage.
The attackers also demanded a ransom of five Bitcoins, an amount estimated to be worth approximately Ksh41 million, and threatened to release unspecified information if their demands were not met within the stated deadline.
The defaced page displayed a cryptocurrency wallet address where the payment was allegedly supposed to be sent.
Part of the message displayed on the hacked website read: “This message is the third time for you; before we leak everything about you. Do a payment of 5 bitcoins to the Bitcoin wallet…. If you want peace before 6 o’clock this evening.”
In addition to the ransom demand, the hackers modified the website’s main banner by displaying messages mentioning three individuals, while much of the official State House branding and design remained visible in the background.
The unusual combination suggested that only parts of the website had been altered during the attack.
Shortly after news of the breach spread, government technicians took the presidential website offline as they worked to secure the platform and begin recovery efforts.
As a result, Newshub.co.ke remained among the few publications that had captured screenshots of the defaced homepage before it was removed from public access.
Although the ICT Ministry has assured the country that government systems remain secure, authorities have not yet identified those responsible for the cyberattack.
Investigations are continuing as cybersecurity experts work to establish how the attackers gained access to the website, determine the extent of the breach, and strengthen security measures to prevent similar incidents in the future.
The government has promised to provide additional updates once the ongoing forensic investigations are completed and more information becomes available regarding the identity of the attackers and the circumstances surrounding the cyberattack.
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