CYBERSECURITY BREACH: Hackers Deface Official State House Website, Demand Ksh.41M Bitcoin Ransom
NAIROBI, Kenya — The official State House website, president.go.ke, has been compromised in a high-profile cyberattack. Hackers successfully breached the platform on Saturday, July 18, 2026, replacing its standard layout with defaced content and demanding a hefty ransom to prevent data leaks.
The attackers took down the site’s official homepage, replacing it with demeaning messages directed at President William Ruto alongside a strict ultimatum.
The Demand
The hackers have demanded a ransom of 5 Bitcoins (approximately Ksh.41 million).
According to reports, the defaced landing page featured a countdown timer giving the government until 6:00 PM to comply.
The malicious actors threatened to release unspecified, sensitive government information if the deadline passed without payment.
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Current Status
A spot check conducted following the incident reveals that the defaced material has since been pulled down. Visitors trying to access the portal are currently met with a blank white page, indicating the platform has been taken offline intentionally for emergency maintenance and restoration.URL Status: president.go.ke -> [OFFLINE / UNDER RESTORATION]
Government Response
Information, Communications, and the Digital Economy Cabinet Secretary William Kabogo has confirmed the security breach, assuring the public that state cybersecurity infrastructure is actively managing the threat.
In a statement shared via social media, CS Kabogo noted that specialized agencies tasked with safeguarding the nation’s digital network are “on top of the situation.
” State House ICT teams have similarly acknowledged the attack and are working to safely restore full functionality to the domain.
This high-level breach comes amidst ongoing efforts by cybersecurity units to fortify state portals, which have increasingly become targets for local and international distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks and defacement attempts over recent years.
More updates to follow as State House releases a formal technical brief.
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