An unidentified group of hackers has sent false messages to more than 150 people in Sylhet, informing them about their first dose of the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine, after illegally accessing the server used for keeping information on the city’s vaccination drive.
Following the incident, which took place on Friday night, the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), responsible for coronavirus vaccination in Sylhet City Corporation (SCC), filed a general diary with the Kotwali Model police station in the city on Saturday.
Upon receiving the false notifications, some 150 to 200 people gathered at the vaccination centre of MAG Osmani Medical College Hospital on Saturday. Later, the health authorities informed them that no message had been sent by them on Friday.
The incident delayed the regular vaccination activities for a while.
Health officials in Sylhet said they had informed the officials concerned in Dhaka about the incident as soon as the hacking incident was detected on Saturday morning. They are now conducting regular activities with a new ID, closing the previous one.
SCC Chief Health Officer Dr Jahidul Islam Sumon said: “The same server is being used in several places. That might be the reason behind this incident. However, attempts are being made to identify the people responsible.”
He said that the first dose of Moderna vaccine had been stopped since August 14 as per the instructions of the DGHS.
However, the first dose of Moderna vaccine is being administered to the expatriates in the city corporation area through registration, said the health officer.
Sylhet Kotwali police station Officer-in-Charge (OC) SM Abu Farhad, confirming the filing of the general diary, said: “The server was fixed within two hours of filing the diary.”
Further investigation into the incident is going on, said the officer.
