Hackers broke into the official Qatar News Agency website and social media accounts. They posted fake statements pretending to be from Qatar’s Emir.
Investigators said the hackers used a weakness in the site and some advanced tools to get in. Later reports claimed that the attack was planned by UAE officials, though the exact way they entered the system wasn’t made public.
The false news spread very quickly across the Gulf region. It created a political crisis that led to several countries cutting ties with Qatar.
Qatar asked the FBI and other U.S. investigators for help. The investigation found that parts of the attack came from the UAE.
Hackers stole about 1.4 GB of data from Qatar National Bank. The files had customer details, credit card information, and even lists with names of government staff, journalists, and members of the royal family.
The bank never explained exactly how it happened. Experts believe the hackers found a way to copy large amounts of data from the bank’s database.
Thousands of QNB customers were affected. Sensitive details like personal information and financial records were shared online.
QNB started its own investigation and made official statements. Security researchers also studied the leaked data, and news outlets checked it with some of the people listed.