By The Election Commission plans to seek help from the police cybercrimes unit to investigate a fraudulent website that closely mimics the official Election Commission site and attempts to gather personal data from Sri Lankan citizens.
The fake website has already been traced by the Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) to a Google server based in the United States.
Election Commissioner General Saman Sri Ratnayake informed the Sunday Times that a request was set to be sent to the police cybercrimes division to obtain a court order, which would allow them to proceed with investigating the website’s creator by acquiring information from Google.
CERT detected the fraudulent site on Friday night. The website, which impersonates the Election Commission, has been distributing links via WhatsApp, X (formerly Twitter), and other messaging platforms, claiming that the Election Commission is recruiting personnel for election-related tasks. The site seeks to collect personal information, including full names, dates of birth, and contact numbers.
CERT’s Senior Information Engineer, Charuka Damunupola, explained that the phishing site used the Sri Lankan Government emblem and the Election Commission’s name to lend credibility to its fraudulent claims.
The Election Commission has already requested CERT’s assistance in investigating the website, and efforts are underway to have the domain taken down. However, since CERT is not a law enforcement entity, its role is limited to technical support, and it cannot directly remove the website.
Phishing is a type of social engineering attack where victims are tricked into revealing sensitive information or inadvertently installing malicious software.
“We are in the process of removing the website. We’ve already submitted the request, but since the website is hosted in the United States, and the Election Commission needs to file a formal complaint, this will take some time,” said Mr. Damunupola. He also noted that the website’s creation in the U.S. does not necessarily imply that the owners are based there—they could be located anywhere.
The fake website remained operational as of last night. To identify the individual behind it, the cybercrimes division will need a court order compelling Google to disclose the website owner’s information.
CERT has advised the public to be vigilant and avoid responding to suspicious requests for personal information. If contacted, people should reach out directly to the Election Commission to verify the authenticity of such requests.
Meanwhile Symbols available for independent candidates at the upcoming presidential election (see montage) and those of registered political parties have been gazetted. Independent candidates will have the option of selecting a symbol from 115 symbols gazetted by the Election Commission.
Eighty-four symbols already allotted to political parties too have been gazetted.
