HYDERABAD – The official website of the Telangana High Court (tshc.gov.in) was subjected to a significant cyber attack, with unidentified hackers tampering with uploaded judicial documents and redirecting users to an illegal online betting portal. The Hyderabad Cybercrime Police have registered a case and launched a full-scale investigation into the breach.

The incident was brought to the notice of the authorities by the High Court Registrar (IT), T. Venkateswara Rao, who lodged a formal complaint with the Director-General of Police (DGP) on Friday.

Breach Redirected Users to ‘BDG SLOT’

The breach was first detected around November 10 when court users attempting to download official PDF documents—such as cause lists, case status reports, and administrative notifications—found the files were disabled and, instead, the pages were redirecting to a gaming and betting application named “BDG SLOT.”

In his complaint, Rao stated that the redirection “clearly amounts to hacking and commission of a cybercrime affecting the reputation of the high court.” The official website, which is hosted on servers of the National Informatics Centre (NIC) at BRKR Bhavan, is a crucial source of public judicial information.

Police Launch Investigation

Based on the High Court’s complaint, the Hyderabad cybercrime station police registered a First Information Report (FIR) on Friday. The case has been booked under multiple sections related to cyber and information technology crimes:

• Sections 66 read with 43, 66C and 66D of the Information Technology Act.

• Section 337 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS – relating to forgery of a court record).

• Section 3(1)(i) of the Telangana Gaming Act (in connection with the promotion of online betting).

A police team reportedly visited the High Court premises on Friday to collect technical details and evidence pertaining to the complaint.

NIC Review Underway

Officials from the National Informatics Centre (NIC), which manages the High Court’s web platform, have immediately begun a technical inquiry into the hacking of the PDF documents. The aim is to ascertain the method used by the attackers to gain unauthorised access and inject the malicious redirection code.

“The site’s functionality is being reviewed by the NIC. We will analyse the NIC enquiry report to identify and nab the accused,” an official from the investigating team confirmed.

While the core judicial database is believed to be secure, the attack on the public-facing document repository raises serious concerns about the security vulnerabilities in critical government-hosted websites. Authorities are working to fully restore site integrity and enhance existing security protocols to prevent any future recurrence of such a high-profile cyber intrusion.