Hacker attack paralyzes parts of Berlin state network; election IT systems unaffected

Commentary by Uwe Rada

Publication date: 2026-08-22 15:28:00

A hacker attack has paralyzed parts of Berlin's administration. Such an attack is always concerning — and a little more so before an election.

Even Interior Senator Iris Spranger (SPD) attended the press conference following an extraordinary crisis meeting of the Berlin Senate. Spranger's area of responsibility includes the smooth implementation of elections. A new House of Representatives — the name of the state parliament in the city-state of Berlin — will be elected on September 20.

The crisis meeting was convened on Wednesday after a massive hacker attack on the Berlin state network, the central data line of the Berlin administration. Shortly after the attack became known on Monday, news spread that it was no longer possible to apply for postal voting documents online.

At its crisis meeting, the black-red Senate in Berlin thus had two explosive topics on the table:

• How can it be that someone from outside penetrates the Berlin state network, forcing the Senate departments for Urban Development and Transport to be taken offline and leaving them unable to work since? Even housing benefit could no longer be paid out.
• Are the elections on September 20 in danger?

It wouldn't be the first time in Berlin. Due to massive irregularities in polling stations and during the counting, the 2021 House of Representatives election had to be repeated. Instead of Red-Red-Green, Black-Red has been governing since the 2023 repeat election, with Kai Wegner as Governing Mayor of the CDU.

It was Wegner who found clear words at the press conference after the crisis meeting. "This is an attack on Berlin," he emphasized. At the same time, Wegner assured that no sensitive data had been leaked in the attack. The geodata that the attacker(s) were after had also been publicly accessible.

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Who was responsible for the hack could not be said by Wegner, the Interior Senator, or the IT specialists of the Berlin Senate Chancellery. The investigations were still ongoing.

The question of whether the Berlin administration, with its numerous isolated solutions, is not practically inviting attackers was also not answered. In Berlin, not all authorities are connected to the state network operated by the IT service center ITDZ. This applies not only to most districts but also to the two Senate departments affected by the hack.

What Interior Senator Spranger could say, however, was: "According to the current status, the IT systems needed for the elections are not affected." This applies both to the IT systems for election preparation and to the systems for election evaluation.

It is also possible again to request postal voting documents online, Spranger reassured. The Interior Senator assured that the short-term problem was no reason to be able to contest the election later. Because citizens can also apply for postal voting in other ways, such as by email, post, or at the district election office. According to the state election office, it is unclear whether the glitch is even related to the cyberattack.

However, these statements are only moderately reassuring. The fundamental problem of Berlin's data security remains. All efforts to end the petty statehood in the Berlin administration, at least in terms of security, and to connect all authorities to the ITDZ have so far failed.

The fact that the hack in Berlin was only discovered by chance by an attentive employee — and that worse could possibly be prevented — makes the situation all the more troubling.