Albania arrests four over massive personal data leak

Prosecutors in Albania arrested four people on Friday for stealing the personal data of more than 630,000 people which then ended up in the public domain, including salary figures and car registrations. Prosecutors declined to say how the data, from 2020-21, was supposed to be used and who bought it, saying the investigation was ongoing.

Prosecutors in Albania arrested four people on Friday for stealing the personal data of more than 630,000 people which then ended up in the public domain, including salary figures and car registrations. Two of the arrested men were IT technicians working at the state tax office and two others, who had bought the data, were working in the private sector, prosecutors said.

"During our investigation we found out that we are not dealing with a hack of our computer system but certain workers managed to steal the data with the aim of selling it to private subjects," prosecutor Elisabeta Imeraj said during a press conference in Tirana. The theft became the biggest story in Albania after the data was accidentally leaked to the public in mid-December and Albanians started to send each others WhatsApp excel files containing the details.

Many people became concerned when they discovered salary discrepancies between same ranking officials both in the state and private sectors. Prosecutors declined to say how the data, from 2020-21, was supposed to be used and who bought it, saying the investigation was ongoing.

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