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How does the local government plan to deal with the unprecedented level of corruption in state structures?
A scandal has erupted in Bangladesh after two high-ranking officers of the anti-terrorist police department were accused of selling confidential information of citizens to criminals via Telegram. According to the publication TechCrunch, this data included national identification information, phone call records and other "secret information".
According to a letter signed by a senior local intelligence official, General Mohammad Baker, the sale of the data occurred in April of this year. The letter alleges that both officers received and passed on "highly confidential information" from private individuals in exchange for money. The investigation revealed that they regularly abused access to the National Telecommunications Monitoring Center (NTMC) system, often turning to it unnecessarily.
One of the accused is a police superintendent serving in the Anti-Terrorist Directorate (ATU). The other is an Assistant Superintendent of Police working in the Rapid Response Battalion (RAB), which was sanctioned by the US in 2021 for its links to disappearances and extrajudicial executions.
NTMC, which monitors telecommunications and intercepts communications to ensure national security, has also long been criticized for its lack of measures to protect freedom of speech and privacy. And in recent years, NTMC has been buying state-of-the-art mass surveillance equipment from foreign companies, which only worsened the situation.
Based on an internal NTMC investigation, it was found that police officers used the National Intelligence System (NIP) platform more often than others, gaining access to information not related to their work. General Baker said that they sent this data to the administrator of one of the Telegram channels, who then tried to sell it.
Due to the investigation initiated, access to all NIP users from ATU and RAB was temporarily suspended. If officers need information for their investigations during this time period, they will be able to obtain it privately based on a formal request.
The Ministry of Home Affairs and the Bangladesh Anti-Terrorism Directorate declined to comment on the situation. A representative of the Rapid Response Battalion also did not provide any comments.
Although the investigation is ongoing, a local government source told reporters that there are still plenty of unscrupulous officials in the country who are willing to trade citizens data.
A scandal has erupted in Bangladesh after two high-ranking officers of the anti-terrorist police department were accused of selling confidential information of citizens to criminals via Telegram. According to the publication TechCrunch, this data included national identification information, phone call records and other "secret information".
According to a letter signed by a senior local intelligence official, General Mohammad Baker, the sale of the data occurred in April of this year. The letter alleges that both officers received and passed on "highly confidential information" from private individuals in exchange for money. The investigation revealed that they regularly abused access to the National Telecommunications Monitoring Center (NTMC) system, often turning to it unnecessarily.
One of the accused is a police superintendent serving in the Anti-Terrorist Directorate (ATU). The other is an Assistant Superintendent of Police working in the Rapid Response Battalion (RAB), which was sanctioned by the US in 2021 for its links to disappearances and extrajudicial executions.
NTMC, which monitors telecommunications and intercepts communications to ensure national security, has also long been criticized for its lack of measures to protect freedom of speech and privacy. And in recent years, NTMC has been buying state-of-the-art mass surveillance equipment from foreign companies, which only worsened the situation.
Based on an internal NTMC investigation, it was found that police officers used the National Intelligence System (NIP) platform more often than others, gaining access to information not related to their work. General Baker said that they sent this data to the administrator of one of the Telegram channels, who then tried to sell it.
Due to the investigation initiated, access to all NIP users from ATU and RAB was temporarily suspended. If officers need information for their investigations during this time period, they will be able to obtain it privately based on a formal request.
The Ministry of Home Affairs and the Bangladesh Anti-Terrorism Directorate declined to comment on the situation. A representative of the Rapid Response Battalion also did not provide any comments.
Although the investigation is ongoing, a local government source told reporters that there are still plenty of unscrupulous officials in the country who are willing to trade citizens data.
