Yesterday, I was kicked off a site that was an admin for. No big deal there. I don’t accept being an administrator very often, but I liked this site and those involved. I won’t mention the site or those involved but seek to warn you of how a great site can be the victim of a hostile takeover by hackers.
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These days, I only belong to big sites. This one had a lot of administrators. It was also very popular. Usually I just post and that is the extent of my participation on a site. But, like I said, I liked the site and the people.
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The takeover probably began with a single admin. That is why you have to check out every person that applies to your site. These are professional hackers and can show you whatever they want. Once in place, they begin to allow fake identities that are theirs or perhaps collaborators, on your site.
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I noticed a huge jump in activity, people wanting to be approved to participate. Probably 10 times the norm. Usually, by the time I got there for approval, they had already been approved. When I did get to them first, they appeared to be fake accounts. I then sounded the alarm, and wrote a piece about hackers trying to takeover. Almost immediately, I was reported as a spammer. By the time I was back up, I was kicked off the site.
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The hackers appeared to be in support of the people of Gaza. But it is my guess, that they are anti-Biden hackers, trying to sow dissent, using the humanitarian crisis there, as their rationale. They could be Russian, Palestinian, or just homegrown Cons and Nutzis.
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This post is a warning! This can happen to any site, no matter how well-run. Be careful who you choose as administrators! They are the door-openers for the hacker mobs that will turn your site into theirs.