Bank of Uganda, the country's central bank, was confirmed to have its accounts compromised in a recent cyberattack but Ugandan Minister of State for Finance Henry Musasizi emphasized the incident to not be as severe as initially communicated by the media, which noted the theft of up to $17 million, reports The Record, a news site by cybersecurity firm Recorded Future.
Such funds were noted by news outlets to have been deposited in Japan and UK accounts, with UK law enforcement claimed to have frozen nearly $7 million. "It is true that our account was hacked, but not to the extent of what is being reported," noted Musasizi, who urged parliament to wait for a complete audit on the incident expected to be released within a month. Musasizi's statement comes as opposition leader Joel Ssenyonyi pressed the finance ministry for more details regarding the incident. "It's important that we know what is happening at the Central Bank. If money is being siphoned, whether by hackers or staff of the Bank of Uganda, it should worry all of us," said Ssenyonyi.
