Google – AFP, 21 November 2013
 |
Australian
police and central bank websites have fallen victim to cyber
attacks (AFP/File,
Roslan Rahman)
|
Sydney —
Australian police and central bank websites fell victim to cyber attacks
Thursday with an Indonesian hacker claiming responsibility, reportedly
demanding that Canberra apologise in an intensifying row over spying.
The row --
triggered by reports that Australian spies tried to tap the phones of the
Indonesian president, his wife and ministers -- has pushed ties between Jakarta
and Canberra to their lowest level since the turn of the century.
Officials
called the attack on the Australian Federal Police and the Reserve Bank of
Australia "irresponsible", and said whoever was to blame could face
prosecution.
"These
attacks... will not influence government policy," the federal police said
in a statement.
"Activities
such as hacking, creating or propagating malicious viruses are not harmless
fun.
They can result in serious long-term consequences for individuals, such as criminal convictions or jail time."
They can result in serious long-term consequences for individuals, such as criminal convictions or jail time."
Police
officials said their site, which hosts no sensitive information, was operating
when staff left work on Wednesday evening but it was down on Thursday morning.
The outage
comes barely two weeks after activist group Anonymous Indonesia claimed
responsibility for defacing more than 170 Australian websites to protest at
reports of Canberra spying on its nearest neighbour and strategic ally.
Ties
between the two countries have deteriorated after reports this week, based on
documents leaked by US intelligence fugitive Edward Snowden, that Australia
tried to listen to the phone calls of the Indonesian president, his wife and
ministers in 2009.
A member of
Anonymous Indonesia, using the hashtag #IndonesianCyberArmy, claimed
responsibility for the latest attacks.
The
Australian Broadcasting Corporation contacted the hacker who said the sites
were targeted "because (of) the act of spying by Australia".
The federal
police and central bank were targeted "because we think (they are) most
important sites of government companies in Australia".
The hacker
added that the action was taken on behalf of "the people of Indonesia, and
the Indonesian Origin cyber army", and demanded that Canberra apologise.
"We're
going to strike again (unless) Australia apologises to the people of
Indonesia."
The
Australian Federal Police would not comment on who might be responsible but
said it was working with the Cyber Security Operations Centre and Australia's
Computer Emergency Response team to identify the hackers.
The central
bank website was also targeted, with a spokesman saying that back-up systems
ensured that while delays may be experienced the site remained operational.
"The
bank has protections for its website, so the bank website remains secure,"
the spokesman said.
Anonymous
is believed to be a loosely organised hacker collective that conducts online
attacks internationally.
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