(AA Photo)
A joint operation by the National Intelligence Organization (MİT), the Cybersecurity Directorate and the Gendarmerie General Command has led to the arrest of five suspects at an Ankara-based software firm supplying digital services to trade unions.
The company, Aydo Yazılım, was targeted after MİT identified a special query interface in some of its union software that allegedly enabled access to personal information belonging to third parties who were not union members. Its owner and employees were detained during simultaneous searches of homes and workplaces in Ankara.
Investigators found that datasets previously leaked onto the internet from various sources could be queried through the system. Searches using Turkish national identification numbers reportedly provided access to individuals’ identity and population registration details, while databases operating in the background contained substantially broader sets of personal information.
The system was allegedly used to complete membership information when new members were added to unions. Investigators also found records belonging to people under the age of 18 in the databases.
Server examinations found the abbreviation “NVİ” — commonly associated with the Directorate General of Population and Citizenship Affairs, which maintains official civil registration records — was systematically used in the system logs. Technical findings, however, indicated that the data had not been obtained directly from the government agency’s systems.
The investigation also found that Aydo Yazılım provided consultancy services to institutions under the name “Clock&Wise” on compliance with Türkiye’s Personal Data Protection Law, known as KVKK.
Authorities are now examining which unions used the system, the extent of its use and the purposes for which the data was processed. The investigation could be expanded based on further evidence recovered from the seized digital materials.
