Anonymous hacks Singapore Prime Minister's website after vow to hunt them down

Advertisement
By Agence France-Presse | Updated: 5 December 2013 17:14 IST
Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's official website was hacked Thursday by apparent members of activist group Anonymous after he vowed to hunt down anyone who attacks the city-state's technological network.

"It's great to be Singaporean today," read a mocking headline in a section of www.pmo.gov.sg next to the group's trademark Guy Fawkes mask, a symbol of anti-establishment defiance worldwide.

Next to it was another image saying: "PM Lee warns hackers: We will track you down even if you think you're 'anonymous'".

Another message read: "ANONYMOUS SG WAS HERE BIATCH", using a pejorative in online youth slang.

Advertisement

The defaced section was quickly taken offline after the hacking incident surfaced in a posting on Facebook. The rest of the site was working normally.

Advertisement

In a statement issued early Friday, the government's Infocomm Development Authority said it was investigating the incident.

"The PMO (Prime Minister's Office) main website is still working, and we are working to restore the page that has been compromised," it said.

Advertisement

Social media and independent websites have become the main arenas of political debate in Singapore, whose mainstream newspapers and broadcasters are widely perceived to be pro-government.

The hacking took place a day after Lee told local journalists that his government would "spare no effort" in going after Anonymous members who last week threatened to wage a cyber war against Singapore.

Advertisement

"Our IT network, the Internet, our communications have become an essential part of our business and our lives now," the Today newspaper quoted him as saying.

"And, therefore, when somebody threatens to do harm to it... we take that very seriously and we will spare no effort to try and track down the culprits and if we can find him, we will bring him to justice and he will be dealt with severely."

It was Lee's first comment since a person claiming to be from Anonymous threatened to mount cyber attacks against the government in protest at new licensing rules for news websites.

In the video posted on YouTube on October 31, a person speaking with a computer-digitised voice and wearing a Guy Fawkes mask said the group would "go to war" with the Singapore government.

A day later a person claiming to be affiliated with Anonymous hacked a reporter's blog on the website of the Straits Times newspaper.

The hacker also warned of further attacks on the tightly governed island's technological infrastructure if demands for greater Internet freedom were not met.

Singapore strictly regulates the traditional media. Its new Internet rules have sparked anger in the blogging and social media community, which says the rules are designed to muzzle free expression.

Authorities insist the new licensing rules do not impinge on Internet freedom.

 

For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who'sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube.

Advertisement

Related Stories

Popular Mobile Brands
  1. Amazon Sale 2025: OnePlus 13s, OnePlus Nord 5 Deals Revealed
  2. Amazon Sale: iPhone 15 Price to Drop Below Rs. 45,000
  3. CMF Headphone Pro India Launch Set for This Date
  4. Redmi 15R 5G With MediaTek Dimensity 6300 SoC, 6,000mAh Battery Launched
  5. iPhone 16 Pro, iPhone 16 Pro Max Offers Listed Ahead of Flipkart Sale
  6. OnePlus 13 Gets Big Price Cut at Amazon Great Indian Festival Sale
  7. Government to Mandate CERT-in Cybersecurity Audits for Crypto Exchanges
  8. Meta's Ray-Ban Display Smart Glasses Get a Screen, Brings New Features
  1. Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra to Be Available at Its Lowest Price During Amazon Sale
  2. How to Buy the iPhone 15 for Under Rs. 45,000 in This Amazon Great Indian Festival 2025 sale
  3. Meta Ray-Ban Display Smart Glasses Launched With a Screen and Meta Neural Band
  4. Ray-Ban Meta Gen 2 Smart Glasses Launched With 2X Battery Life, 3K Ultra HD Camera
  5. Oakley Meta Vanguard Smart Glasses With a Centrally-Placed Camera Launched, Aimed at Athletes
  6. NASA’s Artemis Prepares Crews for Future Mars Missions
  7. JWST Identifies Compact, Metal-Poor Star-Forming Region Tracing Back to Early Universe
  8. Researchers Develop Method to Predict Rare Green Auroral Events on Mars
  9. Kanyakumari Now Streaming on This OTT Platform: Know Everything About This Telugu Romance Drama
  10. Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle OTT Release: Know When and Where to Watch it Online?
Gadgets 360 is available in
Download Our Apps
Available in Hindi
© Copyright Red Pixels Ventures Limited 2025. All rights reserved.