The official Israeli Defense Force (IDF) Twitter account was recently hacked by the Syrian Electronic Army (SEA), saying there was a possible nuclear leak.
It’s a clever tactic to try to embarrass the IDF, but this latest round was more of a headache and annoyance than anything else. Not surprisingly, the Tweets were quickly deleted, but included messages such as:
“#WARNING: Possible nuclear leak in the region after 2 rockets hit Dimona nuclear facility.”
The SEA confirmed its actions:
Official “Israeli army” Twitter Account Hacked http://t.co/nhEcRoieat #SEA #SEA
— SEA Website (@SEAWebsite4) July 4, 2014
The IDF also confirmed it was compromised:
We apologize for the incorrect tweets Our twitter account was compromised. We will combat terror on all fronts including the cyber dimension
— IDF (@IDFSpokesperson) July 3, 2014
SEA and other hacker groups that target IDF – and official Western social media accounts – like to try to spread panic or mock the hacking victims. The IDF pledged to fight cyberterrorism, but may find it difficult if hackers are not within reach of criminal prosecution.
Recently, the IDF conducted coordinated airstrikes against targets in the Gaza Strip, targeting militants following the kidnapping and murder of three young Israelis.
Thank you to RT for providing us with this information
Image courtesy of SEA
