PUTRAJAYA: The Immigration department's official website was hacked today by an individual called "CaptainSmok3r" at 2 am.

In a statement today, Immigration Department director-general Datuk Ruslin Jusoh confirmed the matter and said the cyberattack in the form of defacement, resulted in the department's homepage being replaced with another image display.

He said the Immigration Department took immediate remedial action by blocking public access to the website and carried out overhaul work and security configuration of the website.

"The Department has assured that no information has leaked out," Ruslin said, advising the public not to make assumptions or speculations that could cause confusion and disrupt public order.

Ruslin said the Immigration website is expected to be restored and available to the public soon.

He added that access to the department's services such as, myIMMs and SSPI, was not affected by the cyberattack.

The Immigration Department's Information Technology Division has also held discussions and collaborations with the National Cyber Security Agency (NACSA) and CyberSecurity to help the Department strengthen the website's security features, he said.

-- BERNAMA