In a troubling trend of tit-for-tat website defacements, a group of Indian hackers known as the ‘Indian Cyber Army’ hacked the Oil & Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) website [www.ogra.org.pk] on Saturday. The website was later restored by the site administrators.
The message left on the OGRA page stated that the hack was in response to an attack on over 200 Indian websites by the ‘Pakistan Cyber Army’. The message read:
"You Have Been Hacked By The ‘INDIAN CYBER ARMY’. This Is a Retaliation Of Hacking ‘CBI’."
Previously, a group of Pakistani hackers, identifying themselves as ‘Predators PK,’ had hacked over 200 Indian websites. This attack was a form of retaliation for a recent cyber assault on Pakistani sites carried out by the Indian Cyber Army (ICA). Unlike the ICA attack, which was cited as ‘revenge for 26/11’, the message inserted by the Pakistani hackers did not suggest ideological motivations, but rather pure revenge.
Pakistani Hacker’s Perspective
The Pakistan Cyber Army (PCA), in an email exchange with The Express Tribune, explained that their hacks were acts of revenge in response to the Indian hacks.
“I do this because I love Pakistan and want to do something ‘big’ for my country,” said the chief of PCA.
The page inserted by Pakistani hackers did not suggest ideological motivations. The principal message, posted by a hacker using the handle HEX786, read:
"This is Just A Warning To All Script Kiddies Indian Hackers. Stop Being no0bs and Defacing Pakistani Websites. Don't force Us to Do Something. Your Security Was good But We Like Breaking it!"
Indian Hacker’s Perspective
The Indian hackers involved in the original attack said they wanted to convey a message to Pakistani citizens about opposing the terror route being followed to disturb their neighbors.
The original attack by the ICA was a form of ‘hacktivism’ in retaliation for the Mumbai attacks.
“Indian Cyber Army owns you. Rest in peace, the heroes of 26/11 who laid their precious lives for the country… because of some Pakistanis, the whole of Pakistan is being criticized,” was the message displayed on the page.
