[ISN] Latvia in turmoil after hacker exposes establishment salaries

From: InfoSec News <alerts_at_private>
Date: Fri, 26 Feb 2010 01:51:26 -0600 (CST)
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article7041727.ece

By Tony Halpin
The Times
February 26, 2010 

To the horror of Latvia’s political establishment, a mysterious group of 
computer hackers is threatening to expose the incomes of top officials 
after stealing millions of government tax records.

The group, calling itself the People’s Army of the Fourth Awakening, 
claimed to have downloaded more than 7.5 million documents, including 
VAT receipts and income tax returns, from the State Revenue Service 
(SRS) after exploiting a security loophole on its website.

One hacker used the name Neo, in apparent tribute to the hero of The 
Matrix science-fiction films, in which a vast system for enslaving 
humanity is exposed. He or she claimed that the documents revealed the 
extent of official hypocrisy over belt-tightening reforms introduced as 
Latvia’s economy reeled under the impact of the global economic crisis. 
“The purpose of the group is to unmask those who gutted the country,” 
Neo told the Latvian television current affairs programme Kas Notiek 
Latvija in an interview posted on its website.

Neo has been hailed as a digital Robin Hood by disgruntled Latvians 
after posting details from the documents on the internet to contrast the 
earnings of top officials with cuts experienced by other workers.

[...]


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Received on Thu Feb 25 2010 - 23:51:26 PST

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