CEC targeted by 192 million cyberattacks in one week after elections

Albania’s Central Election Commission (CEC) has been the subject of a massive wave of cyberattacks in the days following the May 11 parliamentary elections. According to Chief Commissioner Ilirjan Celibashi, the institution’s online platforms were hit by 192 million cyberattacks in just seven days, with peak traffic reaching 5,700 requests per second.

Why is this important: The attacks coincided with the final stages of vote counting from both inside and outside the country. Authorities say the aim was to compromise election-related data — a vital target in any democratic process. However, the KQZ confirmed that no data was breached, and all systems withstood the pressure.

Context: Celibashi stated that the attacks originated from foreign sources and bore all the hallmarks of organized cyber operations, similar in scale and structure to those that have recently targeted election authorities in France, Germany, and Estonia.

The assault comes less than two years after Albania faced its worst-ever cyberattack in the summer of 2023, when Iranian hackers took over the government’s e-Albania portal, disrupting public services for days. In response, the government has since made significant investments in cybersecurity infrastructure.

What else: While the attackers behind the current incident remain unidentified, KQZ insists all voting and counting data is intact and secure.