New Delhi: The Delhi High Court’s digital infrastructure faced a severe security breach on Wednesday as a live virtual session presided over by the Chief Justice was repeatedly targeted with explicit pornographic material. The disruption, which occurred before a Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia, has led to a formal criminal complaint being lodged with the Delhi Police’s Intelligence Fusion and Strategic Operations (IFSO) unit. Authorities are currently investigating the incident as a coordinated cyber intrusion aimed at undermining judicial decorum.
The breach was initiated by an unauthorized participant using the pseudonym “Shitjeet Sighn” who exploited the screen-sharing functionality during the supplementary list hearings. Despite court staff immediately terminating the session, the intruder successfully re-entered the conference multiple times to resume the broadcast of offensive visuals. During the chaos, participants reportedly heard an automated audio warning claiming that the court’s system had been “hacked,” further intensifying concerns over the resilience of the platform’s security protocols.
In response to the recurring attacks, the court was forced to suspend virtual proceedings for a significant duration, later resuming with restricted access controls that disabled all interactive features for external participants. Central government representatives, including ASG Chetan Sharma, have called for immediate regulatory measures to ensure any recordings of the incident are scrubbed from digital platforms to protect the sanctity of the court.
The IFSO unit of the Delhi Police is now analyzing digital logs and IP addresses to determine if the intrusion originated from a local source or involved international actors. This episode marks a troubling escalation in cyber interference within India’s higher judiciary, highlighting critical vulnerabilities as courts continue to utilize hybrid hearing models. The High Court administration is expected to conduct a comprehensive review of its virtual hearing software and access management to prevent similar security failures in the future.
