The Web site of the ruling Australian Liberal Party fell victim to an attack perpetrated by staff members of the office of Kim Beazley, the leader of the opposition Australian Labor Party (ALP).
In the lead-up to the Federal election, to be held on Oct. 3, the hack
on the official Liberal Party site was a major embarrassment for
Beazley, who immediately dismissed both staff members.
The Liberal Party distributed information for candidates in the
upcoming Federal election to update the site independent of a Webmaster.
Two ALP staffers acquired these instructions, then circulated e-mail that
provided instructions and encouragement on how to hack the Liberal Web
site.
The Liberal Party site did not have the security to prevent such a breach,
and was subsequently updated with insulting monikers for candidates, and
links to pornographic sites instead of to other pages within the Liberal
Web site.