By The Pulseline News Desk
The government’s handling of the $2.5 million cyber theft at the Public Debt Management Office came under fresh scrutiny in Parliament, with Deputy Minister Kaushalya Ariyaratne acknowledging that the loss could have been prevented had the Central Bank acted more vigilantly when suspicions first emerged.
Responding to concerns raised by the opposition, Ariyaratne has said the cyberattack occurred during a critical transition period, when responsibility for public debt management was being shifted under the newly enacted Public Debt Management Act.
“The Central Bank could have been more vigilant when suspicions arose. The theft would have been avoided if the Central Bank had acted more vigilantly,” the Deputy Minister has told Parliament.
She has explained that the incident took place while officers attached to the newly established Public Debt Management Office (PDMO) were undergoing an 18-month training programme before assuming full responsibility for debt management functions previously handled by the Central Bank.
According to Ariyaratne, the transitional phase had created vulnerabilities that were exploited by cybercriminals before the new institutional framework had been fully established.
She has noted that responsibility for managing public debt has now been completely transferred to the Public Debt Management Office, arguing that reforms introduced after the incident have strengthened institutional safeguards.
Describing the theft as a cybercrime rather than an internal financial fraud, Ariyaratne has said cyberattacks have become an increasing global threat affecting governments and financial institutions worldwide.
Citing international data, she has said a report by the United States (US) Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) had estimated that cybercrime had resulted in losses of approximately $16 billion in the US, while Australia had recorded losses of around $2 billion.
Her remarks came in response to opposition allegations that disciplinary action against four middle-level officers was intended to shift responsibility away from senior officials who oversaw the system at the time of the breach.
Rejecting those claims, Ariyaratne has insisted that the government’s response was not designed to protect higher-ranking officials and maintained that investigations into the incident had been conducted in accordance with due process.
The $2.5 million cyber theft has remained a politically sensitive issue, with opposition parties continuing to question accountability within the Central Bank and the government’s handling of one of the country’s most significant cyber-related financial losses involving public funds.
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