Five websites operated by Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters had been hacked and defaced with skull and crossbones images, defence permanent secretary Nipat Thonglek has admitted, but confirmed it was not terrorist related.
Screenshots of the hacked military websites by Wassana Nanuam
The online attack was carried out by a hacker in Yemen on April 22, according to a military security agency. Among the five military-owned sites attacked were the Office of Welfare, the Maintenance Battalion and the Department of the Adjutant General.
The hacker replaced pictures of the five agencies’ executives with skull and crossbones images and left messages in red saying “haCked by mr.huzam.”
Gen Nipat said the website defacement was the work of a hacker, or a group of hackers, who targets government and military websites in countries to test his hackling abilities.
Asked if the attack was related to the ongoing political conflict or any terrorist group, Gen Nipat said authorities had checked the possibility but found no evidence that it was.
He said he had ordered changes to the firewalls for military websites to increase security and to prevent a repeat of the April 22 onslaught.