The pro-Assad hacktivists say they're not concerned

Sep 9, 2013 06:52 GMT  ·  By

As expected, the notorious pro-Assad hacker group known as the Syrian Electronic Army is on the radar of US authorities. The FBI has issued a memo to warn organizations about the collective and their techniques.

The document, obtained by journalist Matthew Keys, highlights the fact that the Syrian Electronic Army’s “primary capabilities” include defacements, social media account hijacking and spear phishing.

“Over the past several months, the SEA has been highly effective in compromising multiple high-profile media outlets,” the memo reads.

According to the FBI, two particular attacks stand out. One of them is the recent attack on Australian web host and domain registrar IT Melbourne, an attack that impacted Twitter, The New York Times and The Huffington Post.

The second major attack is the one in which the hackers posted a false story about a White House bombing from the hijacked Twitter account of the Associated Press.

The FBI also highlights another important aspect.

“In addition to Syrian hackers, groups or individuals sympathetic to the SEA may also be observed participating in CNO efforts against US Web sites and networks,” reads the FBI memo.

Recently, experts have warned that the Syrian Electronic Army is not the only Syrian hacker group that might pose a threat.

The notice advises organizations to maintain heightened awareness of network traffic and take appropriate steps to protect their networks.

Companies that identify suspicious traffic or network behavior are advised to contact their local FBI Cyber Task Force.

On the other hand, the hacktivists don’t appear to be too concerned about US authorities.

“If publishing the truth about Syria become a crime, then we have serious problem! Anyway, we don’t care about the FBI memo and we will keep going,” the hackers told HackRead.