US hacked Yemeni Al Qaeda sites to reverse propaganda, Clinton says

[Valin]

Fox News: AP

5/24/12

 

In this September 24, 2010 file photo, U.S. Department of Homeland Security analysts work at the National Cybersecurity & Communications Integration Center (NCCIC) located just outside Washington in Arlington, Virginia. (Reuters)

 

The State Department has launched a different sort of raid against Al Qaeda -- hacking into Al Qaeda websites in Yemen.

 

In a rare public admission of the covert cyber war against extremists, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton says cyber experts based at the State Department hacked Yemeni tribal websites, replacing Al Qaeda propaganda that bragged about killing Americans.

 

"Within 48 hours, our team plastered the same sites with altered versions of the ads that showed the toll Al Qaeda attacks have taken on the Yemeni people," Clinton said Wednesday.

 

In response, "Extremists are publicly venting their frustration and asking supporters not to believe everything they read on the Internet," she said.

 

(Snip)