ICT CS Eliud Owalo has reassured the public that all government systems and portals are safe following an attempted hack on the e-Citizen platform.

In a statement issued on Thursday, Owalo stated that government agencies are on high alert to prevent any future hacking attempts. He emphasized that the security of the e-Citizen portal and all government service sites has been enhanced.

"All systems and portals under the control of the government of Kenya are safe," he affirmed.

Owalo urged the public to remain vigilant in their cyber surveillance efforts, while also assuring that the government is actively working to ensure the security of the country's cyberspace.

He clarified that the attempted hack on the state services portal involved unsuccessful attempts to overload the system through unusual requests. The technical team managed to block the source IP address, preventing any compromise of data privacy and security.

"For clarity, both the privacy and security of data were not compromised. The system was not hacked," Owalo confirmed.

However, the incident did lead to slowness in accessing e-Citizen services due to intermittent interruptions. The ICT CS assured that the system will soon revert to optimal utilization levels.

"We want to assure Kenyans that the government has put in place remedial measures to address the current challenge, plus a long-term risk mitigation framework to ensure sustainable data privacy and data security," he added.

Owalo encouraged the public to promptly report any cyber security incidents to The National Kenya Computer Incident Response Coordination Centre through various channels, including incidents@ke-cirt.go.ke, hotlines 254703042700 and +254 730-172700, or through the Incident reporting portal www.ke-cirt.go.ke (http://ke-cirt.go.ke).