Sri Lanka’s finance ministry has suffered the largest cyber theft in its history, with criminals hacking into government systems and stealing more than $3.7 million that was meant to repay debts to Australia. Officials confirmed the breach after discovering that a scheduled foreign payment had vanished from the ministry’s email and computer servers.
Finance Ministry Secretary Harshana Suriyapperuma said investigators detected the intrusion when irregularities appeared in the ministry’s email server, revealing that the payment owed to Australia had been diverted. He noted that criminal investigators are now handling the case and further details cannot yet be disclosed.
The scale of the theft is a major blow to the debt‑strapped nation, which is still struggling to stabilise its economy after years of financial turmoil. Authorities have requested assistance from international law‑enforcement agencies, including Australia.
Australia’s High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Matthew Duckworth, confirmed that Canberra was aware of “irregularities” in payments owed to Australia and said Australian officials were working closely with Sri Lankan investigators.
The incident has raised fresh concerns about the vulnerability of government digital infrastructure at a time when Sri Lanka is heavily dependent on international lenders and undergoing sensitive debt‑restructuring negotiations.
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