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A case of data leakage related to the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) has come to light. According to the report, sensitive information like certification records, shooting scripts, censor board cut orders and distribution agreements of more than 500 films were available online. Documents related to licensing fees and business terms of some films are also said to be included in these. After the case, CBFC has asked for investigation and security audit of the online portal.

Claim of documents of more than 500 films leaked from CBFC portal
It has been claimed that documents of more than 500 films have been leaked from the online portal of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC). According to the report of ‘The Hindu’, these include shooting script, Censor Board’s cut order and distribution agreement. Information about licensing fees and business terms of some films is also said to be revealed. However, the movies themselves have not been leaked.
Documents leaked from e-Cinepraman portal
CBFC gives certificate to films before their release in theatres. For this, film producers and production houses apply through the ‘e-Cinepraman’ portal and submit the necessary documents.
According to the report, documents related to this portal were allegedly leaked and remained available online for several days. Some documents were downloadable through the Internet Archive. After the matter came to light, the related content was removed.

Information related to script and censor cut exposed
The leaked documents are said to include information about the shooting scripts of the films and the Censor Board’s suggested cuts. Other documents submitted for certification are also claimed to have surfaced.
Information about the story and possible changes may be revealed if its script or Censor Board’s instructions become public before the film’s release. This is likely to impact the creative plans and release strategy of the producers. However, the complete details of the affected films and documents are not yet clear.
Distribution agreements of two foreign films also included
According to the report, the leaked documents also included the distribution agreements of Brazilian film ‘The Secret Agent’ and Hollywood film ‘Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die’.
These documents claim to contain information about the license fees of films. According to the report, licensing fees were disclosed in at least three agreements. Such information is usually part of business agreements and kept confidential.
What losses can manufacturers and distributors suffer?
Distribution agreements for films may detail revenue sharing, intellectual property rights, promotion responsibilities, and release terms.
If such information becomes public, negotiations between manufacturers, distributors and other business partners may be affected. They may also have an impact on selling film rights in the future, deciding licensing fees and entering into new agreements. However, at present the actual financial loss suffered by any film producer has not been confirmed.

CBFC starts security audit
CBFC has said that investigation into the alleged data leak and security audit of the e-Cinepraman portal is being conducted. According to the board, information related to unauthorized access has been reviewed, but no evidence has been found of additional access to the allegedly exposed documents.
According to the report, the board said that there was no indication of any filmmaker’s personal account being hacked. Only after the investigation is completed will it be clear how the data became public and how many documents were affected.
Information also given to Internet Archive and CERT-In
According to the report, Internet Archive has removed the concerned account and filed a complaint with cyber crime authorities. Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) has also been informed about this.
Investigation is ongoing. The reason for the data leak, the scope of access to the documents and the potential loss remain to be clarified. This case raises serious questions on the digital security of confidential documents of the film industry.
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