S.Korea raises alert after hackers attack broadcasters, banks

Thursday, 21 March 2013 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Reuters - South Korean authorities were investigating a hacking attack that brought down the servers of three broadcasters and two major banks on Wednesday, and the army raised its alert level due to concerns of North Korean involvement.

Servers at television networks YTN, MBC and KBS were affected as well as Shinhan Bank and NongHyup Bank, two major banks, the police and government officials said. At least some of the computers affected by the attacks had some files deleted, according to the authorities.

“We sent down teams to all affected sites. We are now assessing the situation. This incident is pretty massive and will take a few days to collect evidence,” a police official said.

The banks have since restored their operations, but the TV stations could not say when they would be able to get their systems back up. Some workers at the stations could not boot their computer.

Broadcasts were not affected.

South Korea’s military said it was not affected by the attack but raised its state of readiness in response. None of the country’s oil refineries, power stations, ports or airports was affected.