‘Major breakthrough’ – Pakistan develops antivirus to counter Israeli, Indian cyber attacks

2026-03-07 - 06:23

ISLAMABAD – Pakistan has made a significant advancement in cybersecurity by developing an Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) antivirus to counter cyber attacks originating from India and Israel. Reports said the EDR system has already been installed on all government computers to prevent hacking and strengthen protection against cyber threats. Most cyber attacks targeting Pakistan are believed to come from Indian or Israeli sources. A day earlier, verification of Matric and Inter degrees has been halted after cyber threat advisory from Cyber Emergency Response Team, forcing Inter Board Committee of Chairmen to suspend online authentication services across Pakistan and leaving students facing delays in academic and administrative processes. Students from every major hub, including Karachi, Lahore, Quetta, and Islamabad, are now trapped in bureaucratic uncertainty as their certificates remain unverified. Thousands of students seeking admissions, scholarships, and foreign opportunities are reportedly stuck in a verification blackout, with even international verification cases grinding to a halt. Sources within IBCC reveal that only previously registered cases can be viewed on the portal, no new applications are being accepted. The online system has shifted to a restricted mode due to cybersecurity fears, and manual verification, once a fallback option, has already been abandoned permanently. Officials said the move follows wave of recent cyberattacks targeting major TV channels and government websites, raising alarms about potential security breaches. The advisory from CERT recommended a temporary shutdown to prevent data vulnerabilities, but students and institutions are paying the price with mounting delays and administrative chaos. IBCC’s executive leadership insists the portal is being restored for domestic users, yet international operations remain limited to “read-only” access, meaning no real action can be taken. With no timeline for resumption of full services, thousands of graduates and applicants are left in uncertainty, waiting for verification systems to come back online