Cyber Alert In INDIA
Pakistani hackers have made several attempts to hack into Indian sites–especially those
containing data on sensitive information relating to nuclear test management–to access sensitive informationrelated to the country’s security, said sources in theIntelligence Bureau.The sites targetted include those of Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research (IGCAR), the Nuclear Science Centre(NSC) and the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC).
Although these three sites have been repeatedly hacked in the past, according to IB officials, the recent attempts were aimed at accessing crucial data secured under severely firewalled servers.
“It is quite apparent that the new breed of hackers are much more equipped and trained,” say sources in the IB. Officials also say that there could have been at least a couple of successful attempts to break the codes of the sites.
“There have been as many as seven attempts to hack into the BARC data since the attack on Indian Parliament on December 13. We are also on the lookout for spy programs that might have been installed,” says an official.
The IB has already written to the defence and the home ministry about the issue. The two ministries have, in turn,sought the help of cyber security firms to shore up the sites.
The hackers, according to officials, may be on the payroll of Pakistan’s Inter Services Intelligence.There has been a history of infiltration into Indian sites with sensitive information by Pakistani hackers.
Indian intelligence officials have identified one hacker as Rsnake, who is said to have copied the master database from IGCAR and provided some data to Pakistani intelligence as proof of his access.
The ISI, in turn, has realised the importance of hackers after BARC was hacked in 1998. The first Pakistani hacker group-Pakistani Hackers Club-was formed by two ‘hacktivists’ who used the pseudonyms DoctorNuker and Mr Sweet. DoctorNuker took to hacking when he was a computer science student at Karachi University. Along with fellow hacker Dizasta (real name: Fahad Shamshek Khan), he started hacking into critical Indian and US servers.
DoctorNuker, say IB officials, was the first hacker whose skills were recognised by the ISI and under the latter’s
directives, focused on critical Indian government servers (especially those relating to nuclear and atomic
establishments).
But sources say the most active Pakistani hacker in the recent past has been a person impersonating as Rsnake, who started hacking from the Netherlands where he was working with a group of portals. Inspired by DoctorNuker, he started the hacker group G-Force from Holland.
The ISI has now got him to Pakistan to coordinate other hackers targeting Indian websites, claim IB officials.
containing data on sensitive information relating to nuclear test management–to access sensitive informationrelated to the country’s security, said sources in theIntelligence Bureau.The sites targetted include those of Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research (IGCAR), the Nuclear Science Centre(NSC) and the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC).
Although these three sites have been repeatedly hacked in the past, according to IB officials, the recent attempts were aimed at accessing crucial data secured under severely firewalled servers.
“It is quite apparent that the new breed of hackers are much more equipped and trained,” say sources in the IB. Officials also say that there could have been at least a couple of successful attempts to break the codes of the sites.
“There have been as many as seven attempts to hack into the BARC data since the attack on Indian Parliament on December 13. We are also on the lookout for spy programs that might have been installed,” says an official.
The IB has already written to the defence and the home ministry about the issue. The two ministries have, in turn,sought the help of cyber security firms to shore up the sites.
The hackers, according to officials, may be on the payroll of Pakistan’s Inter Services Intelligence.There has been a history of infiltration into Indian sites with sensitive information by Pakistani hackers.
Indian intelligence officials have identified one hacker as Rsnake, who is said to have copied the master database from IGCAR and provided some data to Pakistani intelligence as proof of his access.
The ISI, in turn, has realised the importance of hackers after BARC was hacked in 1998. The first Pakistani hacker group-Pakistani Hackers Club-was formed by two ‘hacktivists’ who used the pseudonyms DoctorNuker and Mr Sweet. DoctorNuker took to hacking when he was a computer science student at Karachi University. Along with fellow hacker Dizasta (real name: Fahad Shamshek Khan), he started hacking into critical Indian and US servers.
DoctorNuker, say IB officials, was the first hacker whose skills were recognised by the ISI and under the latter’s
directives, focused on critical Indian government servers (especially those relating to nuclear and atomic
establishments).
But sources say the most active Pakistani hacker in the recent past has been a person impersonating as Rsnake, who started hacking from the Netherlands where he was working with a group of portals. Inspired by DoctorNuker, he started the hacker group G-Force from Holland.
The ISI has now got him to Pakistan to coordinate other hackers targeting Indian websites, claim IB officials.
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