Reputed websites under hacker threat: CERT-In

Websites of reputed government and private organisations are under threat from hackers, the Computer Emergency Response Team India (CERT-In) has said, warning users to be extra cautious while using the Internet.

"It is observed that some hacker groups are launching distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks on websites of government and private organisations in India. The attacks may be targeted to different websites of reputed organisations," CERT-In, the national nodal agency for responding to computer security incidents, said in an advisory on its website.

"These attacks are being launched through popular DDoS tools and can consume bandwidth requiring appropriate proactive actions in coordination with service providers," it said.

The agency has asked users to deploy adequate security systems to deal with these attacks originating through DDoS.

As a counter measure, it has also suggested that the users review traffic patterns and if there is any rise, this should be reported to the agency.

In a recent written reply in the Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Communications and IT Sachin Pilot said 112 government websites, including that of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL), were hacked in just three months - Dec 2011 to Feb 2012.

These hacked websites belonged to the agencies in the governments of Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Kerala, Orissa, Uttar Pradesh, Sikim and Manipur.