Australia Classification Board Hacked

2009-04-16

Australia's Classification website includes information regarding the operations of the National Classification Scheme in Australia, along with information about the Classification Board, Classification Review Board and the Attorney-General's Department.

This site, which determines Australia's film, literature, gaming and media classifications, was hacked recently by protesters in response to an ongoing debate over the government's proposed mandatory filtering which would block illegal and adult content online.

The hackers posted this announcement on the website:

Welcome to the Classification Website

This site contains information about the boards that have the right to CONTROL YOUR FREEDOMZ. The Classification Board has the right to not just classify content (the name is an ELABORATE TRICK), but also the right to DECIDE WHAT IS AND ISNT APPROPRIATE and BAN CONTENT FROM THE PUBLIC. We are part of an ELABORATE DECEPTION from CHINA to CONTROL AND SHEEPIFY the NATION, to PROTECT THE CHILDREN. All opposers must HATE CHILDREN, and therefore must be KILLED WITH A LARGE MELONS during the PROSECUTION PARTIES IN SEPTEMBER. Come join our ALIEN SPACE PARTY.

Recently a blacklist of sites was published on Wikileaks, this included a mix of legitimate non-adult sites along with links to child pornography distributers. The government denied that the list was real at first, and then admitted that the list was real, but that the legitimate non-adult sites listed were a result of a technical error and were not intentional.

The Classification Board site was down temporarily, but is back up with a notice that states it is currently being upgraded and that some features would be temporarily unavailable.

Colin Jacobs, EFA vice-chair, stated "The leaking of the list has confirmed some of our worst fears. This was bound to happen, especially as mandatory filtering would require the list to be distributed to ISP's all around the country. The government is now in the unenviable business of compiling and distributing a list which includes salacious and illegal material and publicizing those very sites to the world."

Jacobs continues, "Now that we have seen the list, it is clearly not the perfect weapon against child abuse it has been made out to be. Many of the sites clearly contain only run-of-the-mill adult material, poker tips or nothing controversial at all. Even if some of these sites may have been defaced at the time they were added to the list, how would the operators get their sites removed if the list is secret and no appeal is possible?"