The U.S. military has reportedly repaired two websites that had been defaced to display pro-Kurdish messages or criticize President Donald Trump, the latest example of hackers breaking into federal systems in recent months.
Security researcher Ronald Loveless told CyberScoop, who first reported the defacement, that error pages had been changed on two U.S. Army websites: the Open Innovation Lab, which tests and integrates AI and other technologies into emerging technologies, and the AI Integration Center.
The tampered message appears when someone tries to access a web page that doesn't exist on your website.
The website's error page has been defaced with messages calling Trump a “pedophile” and a “thief,” likely a reference to the president's name appearing extensively in the Justice Department's files on the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The message also mentioned Tom Barrack, the current US ambassador to Turkey, and called for a “free Kurdistan.”
According to CyberScoop, the tampering had been confirmed as of Monday. The publication contacted the Army and the page was immediately removed.
The US military has not disclosed how the error page was altered. The Army's website appears to be running on WordPress and relies on several plugins, which could make it a target for hackers trying to break into the website. It is not clear whether any data was stolen during this incident. CyberScoop said the Army is investigating the incident.
A Pentagon spokesperson did not respond to TechCrunch's request for comment.
Hacktivists usually deface or modify websites with the aim of raising awareness about political causes, but such attacks can also be destructive. Earlier this year, hacktivists targeted the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, releasing a trove of records related to contracts that allow U.S. immigration authorities such as ICE to carry out deportations.
The Department of Homeland Security confirmed a new breach this week after hackers infiltrated one of the department's information-sharing platforms used to pass information between state, local and federal authorities.
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