A land registry hack crippled ANCPI, Romania’s central cadastre authority, on July 14, 2026. According to the cybersecurity agency, the attacker exploited known vulnerabilities and previously published access credentials. The attacker subsequently deleted production systems and backup copies, though offline backups remained intact. Consequently, notaries nationwide are unable to process sales, mortgages, or land registry extracts. However, the authority states that the core legal data remains intact.
Land registry hack affected fully digitized processes
The e-Terra platform connects land registry offices, notaries, banks, and other authorities. It also processes new entries and pending applications entirely digitally. Consequently, since the system outage, the extracts required by notaries for property transfers and by banks for financing arrangements have been unavailable.
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The land registry hack was initially treated merely as a serious technical incident, but ANCPI later confirmed the attack. A perpetrator using the alias “ByteToBreach” has claimed responsibility; he offered allegedly stolen access credentials, source code, and internal documents on a criminal forum. However, investigators have so far found no evidence of stolen personal data or land registry deeds.
Separate backups preserve core data
ANCPI states that the attacker did not alter the primary technical and legal databases. Consequently, multiple backups stored at separate locations allow for system restoration. Technicians are reinstalling the infrastructure and verifying every component before bringing the system back online.
The agency is also migrating its applications to the Romanian government cloud. However, the completion of this process—originally expected by July 22—does not guarantee an immediate restart. As of July 22, ANCPI had not announced a firm date for the resumption of normal operations. Latvia’s CERT is assisting with the investigation, as the same hacker is believed to have previously attacked LVM, the state-owned forestry enterprise.
Tax Deadline Exacerbates Consequences for Homebuyers
The land registry hack has hit the real estate market just before a critical tax deadline. For certain new-build properties, the VAT rate is set to rise from 9 percent to 21 percent on August 1. Consequently, affected buyers could face additional costs of up to 14,000 euros if notaries fail to notarize the contracts in time.
A proposal to extend the deadline to October 1 is currently before parliament. However, the measure has not yet been finalized and applies only to specific existing contracts. The attack also demonstrates how digital registers lacking robust contingency procedures can bring entire markets to a standstill within hours. Romania’s situation therefore concerns not only IT security but also property rights, loans, and the state’s operational capacity.
Author: Blackout News
Sources: bne IntelliNews (21.07.26) – Cybernews (20.07.26) – Digi24 (20.07.26) – Radio Romania (17.07.26)