JAKARTA, Sept 2 — Indonesian hackers yesterday claimed they hit 120 websites in Malaysia.
The hackers said they were acting in revenge against what they perceived as Malaysia’s alleged theft of Indonesian cultural items and abuse of migrant workers, reported the Jakarta Globe.
Indonesia and Malaysia are involved in a spat over the Pendet dance.
The dance, performed by women in Balinese costume, appeared in an advertisement promoting Malaysia, suggesting that the dance is part of Malaysia’s cultural heritage, reported Xinhua.
Indonesians reacted strongly and the government sent a protest note to Malaysia.
The Malaysian government has said it played no part in the ad, which was produced by a private television company.
A statement on a Blogspot blog titled “Terselubung” says that a number of Malaysian websites have been hacked and defaced to “celebrate” Malaysia’s Merdeka Day, two days ago.
“Today, August 31, 2009, an uncreative country, a country who likes to steal Indonesian culture, a country whose citizen is the mastermind of bombings in Indonesia, a country who harassed Indonesia on the Internet... a country which received their independence from Britain, is celebrating its anniversary,” the website stated.
The site then listed in excess of 120 Internet addresses, including domains for Malaysian educational and tourism pages, reported the Jakarta Globe.
Each link, when clicked, opened to a page with flashing graphics of the Indonesian flag and a statement that the site has been “hacked by Indonesia”.
After the list, the message continued: “May Malaysia become a better country on this anniversary and stop stealing and stop being arrogant. Thank you to all our friends at ServerlsDown, MainHack Brotherhood, Indonesian Coder, Yogyacarder Link and all Indonesian underground friends who have supported us.”
There has been no official comment on the hacking so far.
Last Thursday, the Malaysian Embassy in Indonesia expressed regret over recent misunderstandings and accusations levelled by the Indonesian media, reported Bernama.
It said in a statement: “Nobody in Malaysia had claimed that the Pendet dance originated in Malaysia.
“By right, those who had jumped to conclusions, should have done some research to verify the matter before making any remarks.”
The next day it received a bomb threat from an unidentified caller. The caller claimed that a bomb had been planted in the building and was set to explode at 11am, reported Bernama.
However, the deadline passed without incident.
The Indonesian bomb disposal squad confirmed that no explosives were found after searching the grounds of the embassy for about 20 minutes.
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