http://www.bangkokpost.net/today/070200_News05.html February 7, 2000 Hacker hits Thai e-commerce Steals thousands of credit card numbers A US-based computer hacker claimed he has broken into a leading Thai web commerce site, stolen thousands of credit card numbers, and posted them on the world wide web. If confirmed, it would be the first major Internet theft of consumer information reported in Thailand. Authorities at Xoom.com and Geocities.com, which provide space for free web pages, confirm that the hacker, known as Curador, posted lists of card numbers. They have removed the pages and informed American authorities. Tachpong Hotrabhavananda, vice president of Loxley Information Services, said technical staff were trying to determine if Curador had broken into the Loxinfo e-commerce site, www.shoppingthailand.com. The site remained open for business during the weekend. Shoppingthailand.com describes itself as "a consolidated, full-service arena for secure Internet commerce". A modest range of consumer goods features a Thai cookbook, mobile phone batteries and throw pillows. All prices are in US dollars, making it handy for credit card buyers. The site also encourages business-to-business commerce with links to Thai companies. Curador (which means "guardian" in Spanish) has claimed theft of credit card numbers in the past, and has posted lists of names and their numbers on the web. Authorities have been unable to determine if Curador or associates have actually used the cards to purchase goods or services. The web pages posted late last week by Curador mocked the security at the shoppingthailand.com site. According to him, he was able to read more than 5,000 records in the web site's sales database. Dr Tachpong said he didn't even know if the site kept credit card information online. Technicians were checking logs on the company firewall to try to determine if Curador-or any hacker-made attempts to get into the site. Curador has made a recent career out of posting credit card numbers. His name has become familiar in the small computer world which tracks hackers and crackers, although few clues are known about his actual identity. Curador, like many publicity-seeking computer hackers, prefers to be known as a cracker, because he does not change any information on sites where he breaks in. He only copies it. Like many crackers, Curador cannot resist the cheap shot to the sites and companies he raids. In his web pages with what he said were stolen Thai credit card numbers, he had this message: "Maybe one day people will set up their sites properly before they start trading because otherwise this won't be the last page I post to the Net." Curador also claimed that Loxley technicians installed their server computer software and left it running with the provided administrative passwords. posted by: Steve Orrin [EMAIL PROTECTED]
