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May 30, 2011

PBS web pages hacked; group claims attack in response to "Frontline" on Wikileaks

Hackers attacked the PBS website late Sunday (May 29), posting a story on the PBS NewsHour page that dead rapper Tupac Shakur was "alive and well" and exposing username and password information for various PBS staff and stations, all reportedly in retaliation for a Frontline report on Wikileaks.

Online mischief makers Lulz Boat claimed responsibility on its Twitter page around 11 p.m. Sunday. It said in a Tweet that the attack was in response to the Frontline documentary "WikiSecrets," about the leaking of U.S. government secrets to WikiLeaks, its founder Julian Assange and the alleged leaker, former army intelligence officer Bradley Manning.

Teresa Gorman, a NewsHour social media and online production assistant, posted a series of Tweets in response early Monday morning. "Thanks for your concern guys — we are aware there is more than the Tupac story being hacked right now," she wrote. She also declined further comment to CNN.

PBS issued a statement Monday morning: "Last night there was an intrusion to PBS's servers. The erroneous information on the PBS NewsHour site has been corrected. The intruders also posted login information to two internal sites — one that press use to access PBS PressRoom and an internal communications website for stations. We're notifying stations and affected parties to advise them of the situation."