A hacker is reported to have targeted at least 20 South African Web sites last week, 14 of the attacks occurring in a single day. This is according to Internet law firm Buys Attorneys, which routinely tracks the behaviour of hackers.

Reinhardt Buys of Buys Attorneys says last week saw a sharp increase in the number of hacker attacks on local Web sites. "During the past week, a hacker who refers to himself only as ‘r00t3rs' hacked into more than 20 sites."

Buys says the hacker defaced 14 sites on 16 October, making it the worst hacking attack in SA's history. He says the hacker appeared to have focused on sites operating on Windows NT and bearing a .co.za domain name. "The hacker defaced the sites simply by deleting pages and replacing them with a blank page featuring his, or her, name. The successful attacks occurred in the early hours of Tuesday morning.

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