Thread: `Protect the King' webpage hacked

I'm speechless.

Official forgot to relist protecttheking site

Hackers not responsible for webpage 'hijacking'

• Published: 7/12/2009 at 12:00 AM
• Newspaper section: News

The website protecttheking.net was not hacked into but was left open to be modified by other users through a bureaucratic bungle, an investigation has found.

The inquiry found a parliamentary official did not renew the registration of the domain name allowing other users to take over the site. PM's Office Minister Sathit Wongnongtoey and acting government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn claimed on Thursday the website had been hacked.

The link to Making the most out of your money|Reverse Mortgages from Protect The King now shows a finance company advertisement with an illustration of a fairytale king instead of the website's usual entry page.

Mr Sathit and Mr Panitan insisted last week after the error was revealed that the government would track down the "hackers". However, when an alliance of independent IT security experts looked into the suspected break-in, they found things were not as they seemed.

"The website was not hacked," concludes the group's report obtained by the Bangkok Post.

"It has been taken over by other users because the domain registrar did not renew the domain name before its Sept 4, 2009, expiry date."

The official registry for protecttheking.net claims it has been now owned since Oct 21. by a Liverpool-based British businessman. The experts yesterday submitted copies of their report to the PM's Office and the subcommittee of a house panel on military affairs, which handles issues like lese majeste website suppression.

The subcommittee asked the lower house secretariat to register the domain name in September last year as part of a crackdown on websites with content deemed insulting to the monarchy.

The website was registered late in 2008, and launched officially in January of this year with great fanfare, to encourage citizens to register lese majeste complaints.

The domain name provider reminded the Thai official to renew the registration, but nothing was done, the report said.

"The working group recommends that agencies buy back the domain name from the current owner or register the new domain name as http://www.protecttheking.go.th," the report says.

Registering the government-run website with .go.th, instead of the widely used .com or .net will prevent the hijacking of domain names and give the government total authority over the site.

The experts yesterday submitted copies of their report to the PM's Office and the subcommittee of a house panel on military affairs, which handles issues like lese majeste website suppression.

The experts

when an alliance of independent IT security experts looked into the suspected break-in, they found things were not as they seemed.

Nice work TD members!

Will there be two public beheadings?

Never ever.

Originally Posted by watterinja

Will there be two public beheadings?

Be more interesting if they took them down to Sanam Luang, put 'em in velvet bags, and beat them to death with some kind of club. More cultural, more traditionally Thai.

I'd go down to see it, myself. Especially if there were a Red Rally to follow.

With Appi Takki wielding the clubs?