Belgian finance ministry takes MyMinfin offline after a cyberattack

FOD Financiën, Belgium's federal finance and tax administration, said in a statement on Wednesday 28 October that its digital services had been disrupted by a cyberattack. Euronews reports that MyMinfin, the portal where individuals and companies file tax returns, and several other online services were shut down as a precaution while the investigation continues. Cyberattaque.org wrote that the services taken offline included Tax-on-web, the returns system. The administration said it had so far found no trace of personal data being leaked, but the investigation is ongoing. It has not said who the attacker is, whether there is a ransom demand or when services will resume; these points could not be verified.

The timing amplifies the impact. According to the Brussels Times, the deadline for returns covering self-employment income and some foreign professional income is 31 October, three days after the attack. The administration said it would grant a sufficient extension for these returns and announce the new date as soon as possible. Cyberattaque.org reports that the same body's sites finances.belgium.be, finimmoweb.be and ruling.be were taken down as a precaution on 21 October over critical PHP vulnerabilities, with most back online on 23 October. No link has been drawn between the two incidents. On 30 September the agency had also warned of phishing campaigns using its name.