Internet Archive hit by 'catastrophic cyber attack' from pro-Palestinian hacktivists, leaking data of 31 million users
In a major cybersecurity breach, Internet Archive, a US-based non-profit that acts as an online repository of web pages, has been hit by what is being described as a 'catastrophic' data breach. The Internet Archive website was hit by a DDoS attack on Thursday, after which it went offline.??
Internet Archive hacked
Later, Brewster Kahle, the founder of the Internet Archive, acknowledged the security breach, which, according to him, resulted in the "defacement of our website" and a breach of usernames, emails, and passwords.??
Wayback machine's data not corrupted
In a series of social media posts, Kahle said both the Internet Archive's main site and its "Open Library" have been hit, while adding that the massive amount of data its Wayback Machine had archived over two decades "has not been corrupted."??
"We are working to restore services as quickly and safely as possible," he added.??
Data of 31 million users stolen
While there is no confirmation on the data leak, users reported a pop-up message claiming the site had been hacked and the data of 31 million accounts breached.??
"Have you ever felt like the Internet Archive runs on sticks and is constantly on the verge of suffering a catastrophic security breach?" said the pop-up, apparently posted by the hackers.??
"It just happened. See 31 million of you on HIBP!"??
HIBP refers to a site called "Have I Been Pwned," a site that allows users to check whether their emails and passwords have been leaked in data breaches.??
Who is behind the hack
A self-proclaimed pro-Palestinian "hacktivist" group who goes by the name "SN_BLACKMETA" has claimed responsibility for the hacking of the Internet Archive.??
In a social media post, SN_BLACKMETA claimed that the Internet Archive was under attack because the archive belongs to the USA, and "this horrendous and hypocritical government supports the genocide that is being carried out by the terrorist state of 'Israel.'"
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