Indian students in spotlight after RAAF hack attack
By Lexi Metherell for AM
AM | abc.net.au/am
Posted Fri Jul 17, 2009 7:02am AEST
Updated 11 hours 0 minutes ago
The RAAF website on July 16, 2009, when it was hacked
The RAAF website on July 16, 2009, when it was hacked by someone protesting against violent attacks on Indian students. (ABC News: Nic MacBean)
* Audio: Security breach highlights lingering resentment among Indian students (AM)
The Australian delegation sent to India to try to soothe anxiety over the attacks on Indian students has just finished its tour.
But an embarrassing security breach in Australia shows that not everyone is accepting the message that action is being taken to keep students safe.
A hacker has attacked the public website of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), warning the Australian Government to stop the "racist attacks" or more websites will be hit.
The hacker, going by the name of Atul Dwivedi, wrote: "This is a warning message to Australian Government. Immediately take all measures to stop racist attacks against Indian students in Australia else I will pawn all your cyber properties like this one."
The hacker posted the message on the front page of the RAAF website earlier this week, forcing it to be shut down for about eight hours.
The Defence Department is quick to point out that only the external RAAF website was hit but is quiet on whether any sensitive information was compromised.
It says the breach is under active investigation.
An Australian Federal Police spokesman says the matter has not been referred to it for investigation.
Gautam Gupta from the Australian-based Federation of Indian Students disagrees with the hacker's method but he supports the sentiment of the message.
"This view is very clearly not about Australia but about the Australian Government's inaction," he said.
"He has called the Australian Government for action and he has asked Australian Government to take some action to stop these attacks on Indian students, which is very much the view that I think most of the people hold - that the Australian Government has been extremely lazy in stemming these issues."
Soothing anxiety
The spate of attacks on Indian students, particularly in Sydney and Melbourne in recent months, sparked intense media attention in India.
An Australian delegation, which included Education Department officials and a Victorian Assistant Police Commissioner, has just wrapped up a week long visit to India to try to soothe the anxiety the attacks have generated.
This week's hacking of the website has scored some air time.
But a senior editor at India's Hindustan Times newspaper says the story is largely old news in India.
And Pramit Pal Chaudhuri says the delegation arrived too late to generate much public interest.
"At least in the major newspapers in Delhi, they just got about two or three inches of press coverage because by then already you had seen a fair amount of disinterest building up into the media as the story sort of began to fade off of page one and deeper and deeper into the newspaper," he said.
But he says the damage may already have been done.
"Speaking with Australian diplomats who are serving here, they have not quantified the numbers, [but there has been] a very sharp drop in student visa applications and their only hope really is that they will recover as this entire issue sort of fades away," he said
Indian students in spotlight after RAAF hack attack - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
By Lexi Metherell for AM
AM | abc.net.au/am
Posted Fri Jul 17, 2009 7:02am AEST
Updated 11 hours 0 minutes ago
The RAAF website on July 16, 2009, when it was hacked
The RAAF website on July 16, 2009, when it was hacked by someone protesting against violent attacks on Indian students. (ABC News: Nic MacBean)
* Audio: Security breach highlights lingering resentment among Indian students (AM)
The Australian delegation sent to India to try to soothe anxiety over the attacks on Indian students has just finished its tour.
But an embarrassing security breach in Australia shows that not everyone is accepting the message that action is being taken to keep students safe.
A hacker has attacked the public website of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), warning the Australian Government to stop the "racist attacks" or more websites will be hit.
The hacker, going by the name of Atul Dwivedi, wrote: "This is a warning message to Australian Government. Immediately take all measures to stop racist attacks against Indian students in Australia else I will pawn all your cyber properties like this one."
The hacker posted the message on the front page of the RAAF website earlier this week, forcing it to be shut down for about eight hours.
The Defence Department is quick to point out that only the external RAAF website was hit but is quiet on whether any sensitive information was compromised.
It says the breach is under active investigation.
An Australian Federal Police spokesman says the matter has not been referred to it for investigation.
Gautam Gupta from the Australian-based Federation of Indian Students disagrees with the hacker's method but he supports the sentiment of the message.
"This view is very clearly not about Australia but about the Australian Government's inaction," he said.
"He has called the Australian Government for action and he has asked Australian Government to take some action to stop these attacks on Indian students, which is very much the view that I think most of the people hold - that the Australian Government has been extremely lazy in stemming these issues."
Soothing anxiety
The spate of attacks on Indian students, particularly in Sydney and Melbourne in recent months, sparked intense media attention in India.
An Australian delegation, which included Education Department officials and a Victorian Assistant Police Commissioner, has just wrapped up a week long visit to India to try to soothe the anxiety the attacks have generated.
This week's hacking of the website has scored some air time.
But a senior editor at India's Hindustan Times newspaper says the story is largely old news in India.
And Pramit Pal Chaudhuri says the delegation arrived too late to generate much public interest.
"At least in the major newspapers in Delhi, they just got about two or three inches of press coverage because by then already you had seen a fair amount of disinterest building up into the media as the story sort of began to fade off of page one and deeper and deeper into the newspaper," he said.
But he says the damage may already have been done.
"Speaking with Australian diplomats who are serving here, they have not quantified the numbers, [but there has been] a very sharp drop in student visa applications and their only hope really is that they will recover as this entire issue sort of fades away," he said
Indian students in spotlight after RAAF hack attack - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
Last edited:
and am affraid after this thing aussies will show more anger police:
Kudos to Atul Dwivedi.
