Attacks continue on Russian and Georgian Web sites, but who's to blame?

By Tim Conneally | Published August 14, 2008, 1:29 PM

Armed conflict between Russia and Georgia has been paralleled by what many in the media have classed a "cyberwar," where Georgian Web sites have been crippled by DDoS attacks and defacements.

As Georgian government sites were rendered inaccessible this week, Poland, Estonia, and the United States hosted mirrors to provide supplementary outlets for information. Polish president Lech Kaczynski's official site says, "Along with military aggression, the Russian Federation is blocking Georgian Internet portals."

Though the attacks were traced to servers in both Russia and Turkey, the Russian government has denied involvement in the action, citing several of its own Web services that have also succumbed to DDoS attacks.

The denial of service attacks against Georgia bear a remarkable similarity to those that took place against Estonia in 2007. These attacks, due to their scope, were also suspected to have been orchestrated by the Russian government, but no evidence could be provided to substantiate any accusations.

In July, 300 Lithuanian sites were compromised and defaced by pro-Russian hackers in response to the Lithuanian ban on Soviet symbols, such as the hammer and sickle of the old Communist Party. This act was preceded by appeals on Russian forums, according to The Baltic Course, that called for hackers to unite against Baltic countries Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania as well as Ukraine.

"All the hackers of the country have decided to unite, to counter the impudent actions of Western superpowers. We are fed up with NATO's encroachment on our motherland, we have had enough of Ukrainian politicians who have forgotten their nation and only think about their own interests. And we are fed up with Estonian government institutions that blatantly re-write history and support fascism," the message stated.

Those attacks, according to Lithuanian security researchers, came from compromised French and Swedish hosts.

The Estonian cyberattacks in 2007 and the current ones against Georgia are now regarded as the two of the biggest organized service attacks in history. Unfortunately, no firm evidence has been presented that implicates any single organization in either action.

Comments

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"It's the god d*** JEWS!!! Israel was arming Georgian forces to attack Russia to keep them busy, while Israel and USA go after Iran. Russia has a stake in Iran with providing them the reactors for Nuclear research. Every war in the past 100 years has been the result of Jew banker instigators."
By What-A-Waste

Let me guess, this story distracted your Mein Kempf & Protocols of the Elders of Zion study time. Or maybe a Muslim Hezbollah/Hamas wannabe.

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It's the g** d*** JEWS!!! Israel was arming Georgian forces to attack Russia to keep them busy, while Israel and USA go after Iran. Russia has a stake in Iran with providing them the reactors for Nuclear research. Every war in the past 100 years has been the result of Jew banker instigators.

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Of course Russia is to blame. Who do they think they're kidding? Someone else just happened to start a DDoS attack right when they launch a military assault? Riiiight...

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Dang, at least someone else understands. :)

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Last I heard Russia's population was on the rise. And in a way, Bush is responsible due to his delusional belief in Putin as a reforner.

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Well you must have excellent sources then. I'll stick with accurate ones instead.

A simple Google search brings you: http://en.wikipedia.org/.../Demographics_of_Russia

People have been bailing on Russia like rats on a sinking ship for a decade and a half now.

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It's amazing how you can blame Bush for Russia's actions. In a way, I can't wait until Bush is out; not because I don't like him, but because I can't wait for this brainless trend of Bush-hating to be over.

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Your right. Its awful. Its happens on a daily basis. Either on TV, the internet, or in person I'll hear someone whine about something and blame it all on Bush.

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We just have to wait until Russia's population finishes its steady decline, at which point no one will be left there. Just have a little patience.

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George Bush is to blame, don't you know he is President of the world and is responsible for EVERYTHING!

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You are absolutely correct; President Bush is the root of ALL evil. Not to fear however, as our Lord and Saviour, Barack Obama, will soon be elected. I predict that he shall save not only mankind, but the very Universe itself! *sigh* My hero.

*cough-cough*

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God help us.

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My rant was ever so slightly tongue-in-cheek, in case you didn't catch that. I agree though...God help us - save us from ourselves before it's too late.

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Yeah, I did catch that.

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