SMRT webpage on bus ad rates hacked

A page on transport operator SMRT's website was apparently hacked into yesterday.

Visitors who tried to access the company's media advertising rates for buses under the domain www.smrtmedia.com.sg were directed out of the website to another webpage with the heading "Hacked By: BORTECINE TIM".

Laid out on a black background were various motifs, including a picture of a man beside a snarling wolf and the symbol of a crescent moon and star, similar to the symbol on Turkey's national flag.

It is not clear how long the website was compromised, but a check by The Straits Times at around 4pm yesterday still showed the hacked page. By 6pm, the correct page had been restored.

SMRT's vice-president of corporate information and communications, Mr Patrick Nathan, said: "We are investigating the incident and monitoring our online presence closely."

SMRT is not alone among Singapore companies in being the target of cyber breaches.

Last month, details of more than 300,000 members of karaoke bar chain K Box were leaked online by a hacker group calling itself The Knowns.

In December last year, Standard Chartered Bank said the statements of 647 private banking clients had been stolen through a server of Fuji Xerox, which printed account statements for the bank. Alleged hacker James Raj Arokiasamy has been charged with the offence.

Mr Chong Ronghwa, staff malware researcher at IT security firm FireEye, said that in SMRT's case, the hackers may be "exploring the vulnerabilities of the website". This could be done through various hacking techniques.

adrianl@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on Oct 15, 2014.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.