On this background, the Norwegian Helsinki Committee (NHC) has issued a letter to the ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan, asking whether the Court has now diagnosed the cyber-attack, the scope of compromised information, and the technical nature of the intrusion. “While we appreciate that the attack may be under criminal investigation, transparency about the diagnosis is essential, especially vis-à-vis victims and NGOs that have submitted information” to the ICC Office of the Prosecutor, the letter states. – “Until we have heard from you on this matter, we are compelled to pause the submission of potential evidence to your Office and to ask our partners in situation countries to do the same.”
The NHC asks the ICC Prosecutor to respond concerning IT security measures
International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor Karim Khan. Photo: REUTERS/Christian Levaux
On 19 September 2023, it became known that the International Criminal Court (ICC) had “detected anomalous activity affecting its information systems.” Media reports described the situation as serious, disrupting employees' access to e-mail, documents, and the internet. Reports suggest but do not confirm that sensitive information related to any of the Court’s situations has been compromised.