Check out our Monthly Survey Page to see what our users are running.
We do often include affiliate links to earn us some pennies. See more here.

A sad day for the internet, as it has been confirmed that the Internet Archive (https://archive.org/) that hosts a massive amount of historical data has been hit by DDoS attacks, and unfortunately they've had a breach.

Recently instead of seeing the website as usual, users were greeted with message like this (credit):

Have you ever felt like the Internet Archive runs on sticks and is constantly on the verge of suffering a catastrophic security breach? It just happened. See 31 million of you on HIBP!

HIBP is in reference to the popular HaveIBeenPwned website, that lists various data breaches and now includes this latest breach in their database. Troy Hunt, founder of HIBP, confirmed in a thread on Twitter / X that it is legitimate and they had been communicating with the Internet Archive about it,

The breach was also confirmed by Brewster Kahle, founder of the Internet Archive, who said this on Twitter / X:

What we know: DDOS attack–fended off for now; defacement of our website via JS library; breach of usernames/email/salted-encrypted passwords.

What we’ve done: Disabled the JS library, scrubbing systems, upgrading security.

Will share more as we know it.

It did briefly come back up, but was hit by another DDoS. As a result, the Internet Archive has been taken offline while their admins deal with the situation.

An account on Twitter / X called "Sn_darkmeta" claimed responsibility for it.

Just another reminder that you should never share passwords between websites.

Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
Tags: Security, Misc
16 Likes
About the author -
author picture
I am the owner of GamingOnLinux. After discovering Linux back in the days of Mandrake in 2003, I constantly checked on the progress of Linux until Ubuntu appeared on the scene and it helped me to really love it. You can reach me easily by emailing GamingOnLinux directly.
See more from me
33 comments
Page: 1/4»
  Go to:

tfk Oct 11
Lame. Don't they realize that archive.org is fighting for our right for free information. That probably includes them.
Stella Oct 11
I don't get why anyone would want to attack the internet archive??? That's like bombing a library. What's the frikkin point


Last edited by Stella on 11 October 2024 at 10:27 am UTC
pb Oct 11
I just wonder why did 31 million people need an account on archive.org. Genuinely wonder, because I've been using it (occasionally) for 25 years and never needed an account.
WMan22 Oct 11
Quoting: StellaI don't get why anyone would want to attack the internet archive??? That's like bombing a library. What's the frikkin point
This is either a false flag operation because taking down a resource used to archive warcrimes DEFINITELY isn't gonna be helping Palestinians which sn_darkmeta said is the reason they did this...

Or, the people who are doing this are incredibly stupid and stubborn and are gonna keep shooting at their foot until it's just a stump left.

Honestly, whatever the case is, I hope they at least pissed off the right people by doing what is essentially the historical preservation equivalent of kicking a puppy. And by the right people I mean the kind that would be angry enough about this to counter attack them.

At the very least I hope this drums up attention for the lawsuit IA is going through so they can get more funding.
LoudTechie Oct 11
Quoting: tfkLame. Don't they realize that archive.org is fighting for our right for free information. That probably includes them.
There're those for who freedom is a threat and those who view it as a weapon.
You can't host any sizable humanitarian effort without harming someone's power.
The mere fact that you're sizable is enough to get enemies(looters).
The mere fact that you're helping people is enough to take you down for some.
Klaas Oct 11
What a horrible thing to do.
tfk Oct 11
Quoting: LoudTechie
Quoting: tfkLame. Don't they realize that archive.org is fighting for our right for free information. That probably includes them.
There're those for who freedom is a threat and those who view it as a weapon.
You can't host any sizable humanitarian effort without harming someone's power.
The mere fact that you're sizable is enough to get enemies(looters).
The mere fact that you're helping people is enough to take you down for some.

Well they're still bastards.
LoudTechie Oct 11
Quoting: pbI just wonder why did 31 million people need an account on archive.org. Genuinely wonder, because I've been using it (occasionally) for 25 years and never needed an account.
According to their website you can borrow different kinds of media with it.
Archive.org has a bunch of deals(and won trials) with publishers of more heavily copyrighted works that allow them to do restricted user distribution of those works like a library with physical books.
Since Corona they're actually in hot water about that, because back than they suddenly let everybody at once use these media files(without permission).
LoudTechie Oct 11
Quoting: tfk
Quoting: LoudTechie
Quoting: tfkLame. Don't they realize that archive.org is fighting for our right for free information. That probably includes them.
There're those for who freedom is a threat and those who view it as a weapon.
You can't host any sizable humanitarian effort without harming someone's power.
The mere fact that you're sizable is enough to get enemies(looters).
The mere fact that you're helping people is enough to take you down for some.

Well they're still bastards.

Cyber criminals tend to fall within less agreeable parts of the general population.
I say selection bias.
Nateman1000 Oct 11
Some people are just evil
While you're here, please consider supporting GamingOnLinux on:

Reward Tiers: Patreon. Plain Donations: PayPal.

This ensures all of our main content remains totally free for everyone! Patreon supporters can also remove all adverts and sponsors! Supporting us helps bring good, fresh content. Without your continued support, we simply could not continue!

You can find even more ways to support us on this dedicated page any time. If you already are, thank you!
Login / Register


Or login with...
Sign in with Steam Sign in with Google
Social logins require cookies to stay logged in.