Away from the ongoing military action that’s headlining the India-Pak conflict, of which Operation Sindoor is the official Indian name, another war is being raged from the shadows of cyberspace. Where alleged Indian vigilante hackers are undertaking Operation CyberShakti, claiming to have caused severe damage to several Pakistani government websites and digital infrastructure.
Operation CyberShakti is a self-proclaimed Indian hacker initiative that has been allegedly active in defacing and disrupting Pakistani web infrastructure, particularly defence and government websites, as part of the ongoing cyber conflict between India and Pakistan.
The digital hacking operation involves sophisticated cyberattacks including spear phishing, data breaches, and website defacements aimed at undermining Pakistani digital assets.
According to a X.com post from earlier today, Operation CyberShakti has been allegedly behind the cyberattacks related to Pakistan’s prison info being compromised, unauthorised access of Pakistan’s military engineering services’ database and their oldest power plant, banking transaction related data, among other things.
All in all, the cyber sleuths behind Operation CyberShakti are taking credit for all of the above and then some, like 1000+ CCTV hacks in Pakistan, 700+ websites taken down.
Also read: India-Pak conflict: 5 examples of rise in cyber warfare threats
Operation CyberShakti is also allegedly behind the taking down of several Pakistani public infrastructure and government websites – and at the time of writing this report, we did verify that most of the claimed inaccessible websites were in fact inaccessible, both from India and other international locations (Singapore and USA).
Operation CyberShakti’s actions come after Pakistani hackers went on the offensive, in the aftermath of Pahalgam terrorist attack in April 2025.
Also read: India-Pakistan conflict: AI, satellites, and cyber tools used to track terror targets
Pakistani hacker groups, notably the “Pakistan Cyber Force,” claimed to have breached sensitive data from Indian defence institutions such as the Military Engineer Services (MES) and the Manohar Parrikar Institute of Defence Studies and Analyses (MP‑IDSA), compromising login credentials and personal information of defence personnel.
According to an ET report, the group alleges it exfiltrated over 10 GB of data – including names, service numbers, and email addresses – raising fears of identity theft and spear‑phishing against military officers.
Beyond just tit-for-tat, the folks behind Operation CyberShakti seem to have caused significantly larger damage to Pakistan’s public digital infrastructure. And according to their online warning, “this was just phase 1.”
Also read: Do drones track you via phone location? Govt labels viral alert as fake amid India-Pak tensions
