Department "K" looking for hackers who steal queues to Polish consulate

Poland's Ambassador Leszek Szerepka apologized to Belarusians for the problems with electronic registration which appeared due to Belarusian hackers, at the press-conference on November 14. Head of the administration for investigation of crimes in the sphere of high technologies of the Interior Ministry Ihar Charnenka has told Euroradio how it is possible to cope with these problems and whether the Belarusian specialists of the  Department "K" help them.

Euroradio: Poland's Ambassador Leszek Szerepka blames some mysterious "script" in all the problems with on-line registration of visa applications. Is it really that dangerous?

Ihar Charnenka: I can tell you one thing: we are as much interested in putting things back to order as the Polish side. We want our citizens to get visas with no problems and go wherever they want to. At the same time, we are identifying the people who created this outrageous situation. If we find corpus delicti anywhere - there will be corpus delicti. It won't necessarily be the corpus delicti in the field of informational security. However, the people should know - if someone renders these so-called "services" not being a registered individual entrepreneur, with no agreements with travel companies, if he just found this script in the Internet, ran it and takes a 400$ fee, he will be subjected to responsibility for illegal entrepreneurship when we find him!  This is not an easy thing, I should say.

Euroradio: Are you dealing with this problem due to your own initiative?

Ihar Charnenka: We started doing that upon our own initiative. It was back in May, when this information just appeared. We contacted the Polish Embassy, they provided us certain information. Now, we cooperate with the Polish law-enforcement authorities on getting the data that could lead to finding the plotters.

Euroradio: Which article covers such "tricks" with on-line registration?

Ihar Charnenka: When a person gets money from another person for such actions, it becomes his activity. He does not pay taxes, he is not an entrepreneur - there is corpus delicti in this - illegal entrepreneur activity. This is not a crime against informational security. 

Euroradio: So, you are seriously dealing with the "Polish problems"?

Ihar Charnenka: Yes! And we are seriously dealing with those who illegally get money from this as well! Unfortunately, the Polish side cannot tell us how many opportunities to register applications per day they gave out, for example, to travel companies. The script allows to fill all fields in the application form automatically while you are filling them manually. It looks like there is nothing illegal in that - the web-site is not hacked, no one suffered from any damage. Apart from our citizens, who have to overpay. I am not saying that the situation has become massive - it is changing, the Poles made some amendments in their software. We also took certain measures.

Euroradio: When will this end?

Ihar Charnenka: When the Poles reply to the enquiry that we sent them. We sent them a series of questions which we want to get answers to. Our technicians gave them our recommendations: what should be done in the technical side to limit this stream. If the Polish side gives us this information, we will find the plotters. If not, sorry, we cannot do anything.

Euroradio: In case of reply - will they reveal some diplomatic secrets?

Ihar Charnenka: What secrets! There is only technical information there with no political or other aspects. This information is a technical component which would help us to find the people who get money from citizens by such an illegal way and get rich on that.

Euroradio: How do these hackers sell the stolen application forms afterwards?

Ihar Charnenka: They find people who need such service beforehand, by publishing corresponding ads. They do it also at the Embassy's territory. Like, we will make a visa for you, and then get their passport details, and receive money from them. Script includes these passport details into the database of the Polish Embassy and that's it! You want to get too much information from me! We are dealing with this problem together with the law enforcement authorities from the Polish side. We do not leave our citizens in need!

Euroradio: Well, have you caught at least one "scripter", to punish him in public?

Ihar Charnenka: What can you accuse him of? Using script? So what? As for selling it... It should be proved that he conducted illegal entrepreneur activity! It is not fast. Whatever they may say, our country is a legal state and we stick to legal norms very carefully.