LulzSec has fun - gains root on Murdoch’s Sun
by Steve Ragan - Jul 19 2011, 07:00LulzSec, a group known for chaos and several high-profile attacks, has returned from a self-imposed exile in order to launch Murdoch Meltdown Monday. In the end, the world was treated to fake news on News Corp’s tabloid, The Sun, and the unique brand of humor that LulzSec is known for on Twitter.
It’s been a while, but LulzSec has once again returned to the headlines, by hacking a media giant itself recently accused of hacking information from mobile phones. Visitors to Rupert Murdoch's The Sun (thesun.co.uk) and News International (newsinternational.co.uk) were redirected to LulzSec’s Twitter feed on Monday.
As mentioned by LulzSec’s Topiary, “We have joy, we have fun, we have root on Murdoch's Sun!”
In addition to redirection, the hijacking included fake news reporting Murdoch’s death. The false report said that the media mogul ingested a large quantity of palladium before dying in his famous topiary garden.
Shortly after, News Corp. employee information, including usernames and passwords, were also posted onto the Web.
Some of the data belonged to Rebekah Brooks, the recently resigned chief executive of News International, along with former News Corp. editor Pete Picton, and Bill Akass, an editor at News of the World before the UK tabloid at the center of the recent phone hacking scandal was shuttered.
The run on News Corp. marks the return of LulzSec, but it does not mean the group is here to stay. Moreover, while Twitter followers were told to expect additional attacks, LulzSec could simply depart from the limelight again at any moment. After 50 days of recent non-stop chaos, the hackers faded into the world of Anonymous, but not before encouraging everyone to join the AntiSec movement, which has resulted in several security incidents of its own.
The Sun was down most of Monday afternoon, but online at the time this story was written. News International remains offline.
Murdoch will go before parliament on Tuesday to answer questions about News of the World’s role in the voicemail hacking scandal that has rocked his company.
More information on the News Corp. scandal can be found below:
MPs will quiz Murdoch over hacking incident
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