According to Bitcoin.com News, on July 19, the official website of Kenyan President William Ruto was hacked on July 18. The homepage was replaced with a derogatory, insulting message targeting President Ruto. The attackers also issued a deadline ultimatum, demanding that the Kenyan government pay a $5 BTC ransom by that evening, or else they would release confidential information publicly.
July 18 Attack Timeline: Breach of Homepage, 5 BTC Ultimatum
According to Bitcoin.com News, the attack took place on July 18, 2026 (Saturday). The hackers successfully infiltrated the Kenyan president’s official website (president.go.ke), directly posting derogatory, insulting content targeting President Ruto on the homepage and issuing an ultimatum to the Kenyan government: it must pay a 5 BTC ransom by that evening, or they would leak unspecified confidential data to the public.
After the Kenyan government launched its response, it temporarily restricted public access to the site to allow a professional team to conduct a comprehensive forensic investigation. As of the time 《Bitcoin.com》 published its report, president.go.ke was still offline.
Government Response Measures and William Kabogo’s Official Statement: Response Protocol Activated, NC4 Coordinated Investigation
According to the official statement by William Kabogo, Cabinet Secretary of Kenya’s Ministry of Information, Communications and Digital Economy, on the X platform, the government has taken the following response measures:
ICT Authority activates cyber security response protocol: launched immediately after the attack
temporarily restricts public access: to facilitate forensic investigation
cross-agency coordinated investigation: technical teams from the State Council, NC4 (National Computer and Cybercrime Coordination Committee), and external technical cooperation partners are working closely together
official statement: On X, Kabogo said there is currently no evidence indicating that sensitive data was accessed without authorization, leaked, or lost
Second Major Cyberattack in Kenya Within a Year
This is the second time in a short span of one year that Kenya has faced a major cyberattack targeting critical national infrastructure. In November 2025, Kenya previously experienced a serious incident involving coordinated attacks on multiple ministry websites.
According to a report released earlier this year by NC4, Kenya’s critical infrastructure suffered as many as several billions of cyber threats within just three months, indicating that the frequency of attacks against Kenya’s national infrastructure continues to rise. As of the time of this report’s publication, the identity and organizational methods behind this Bitcoin extortion incident have not been officially clarified.
FAQ
When was Kenya’s president’s official website hacked, and how much bitcoin was the ransom?
According to Bitcoin.com News’ report on July 19, 2026, the attack occurred on July 18, 2026 (Saturday). The hackers demanded a ransom of 5 bitcoins (BTC) and threatened to publicly disclose confidential data if it was not paid.
What is the Kenyan government’s position on this cyberattack?
According to the X platform statement by William Kabogo, Cabinet Secretary of the Ministry of Information, Communications and Digital Economy, there is currently no evidence showing that sensitive data was accessed without authorization, leaked, or lost. The government’s systems and digital services remain safe and functioning normally.
How many times has Kenya suffered a major cyberattack?
According to the original report, this is the second major cyberattack Kenya has faced within one year targeting critical national infrastructure. The first was the coordinated attack incident involving multiple ministry websites in November 2025; the NC4 report noted that Kenya’s critical infrastructure received several billions of cyber threats within three months.
