Hackers Add Smut to Govt. Sites

They hit California especially hard, and not easy fixes are in sight
By Caroline Zimmerman,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 7, 2007 5:50 PM CDT
Hackers Add Smut to Govt. Sites
Hackers are wreaking havoc on government computers.   (Shutter Stock)

Hackers are wreaking havoc on government websites, and the problem isn't going away anytime soon, PC World reports. Last week, people who visited government sites in California and elsewhere were redirected to porn. The feds began pulling the plug on all of California's sites but reversed course when state officials complained of the drastic measure.  No easy long-term fixes are in sight.

To protect citizens—especially kids—from porn, government sites need to employ active web administrators, said one critic in the industry: "You can't just put a web server out there and forget about it." In addition to the California sites, hackers also dipped into the site for Brookhaven National Laboratory, which conducts nuclear research. (More internet stories.)

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