Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Stout]

Also, do u buy the conclusion that the lawmaker's aide acted independently in attempting to alter the results of the election?

http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2011/12/117_100416.html

12-08-2011 17:25

Ex-aide of GNP lawmaker admits cyber attack

By Na Jeong-ju

A former secretary of Rep. Choi Gu-sik of the ruling Grand National Party (GNP) told investigators that he masterminded a cyber attack that crashed the website of the country�s election watchdog during the Oct. 26 by-elections, police said Thursday.

Police last week revealed that the 27-year-old ex-secretary, surnamed Gong, hired a local Internet firm to attack the website, suggesting possible involvement of senior party officials. Investigators, however, said as yet they have no evidence showing the party�s involvement in the hacking.

�Gong finally confessed that he committed the crime on his own,� a police spokesman told reporters on condition of anonymity. �He believed the attack would help then-GNP�s candidate for the Seoul mayoral race, Na Kyung-won, and assist Choi as well.�

Police will announce the result of their investigation into the hacking scandal before referring the case to the prosecution today. The prosecution said it has set up a special team to conduct its own investigation.

Suspicions are now growing over whether police have done their job properly to get to the bottom of the crime, which opposition parties says was an attack on democracy.

Some opposition lawmakers have claimed that the National Election Commission (NEC) and the National Intelligence Service could have blocked the DDoS attack but didn�t.

If he himself orchestrated the hacking, how he paid for the scheme remains a big question.

Internet security experts say such an attack cost at least 200 million won ($177,000). Gong�s monthly salary was less than 2 million won.

Gong initially denied his involvement, but changed his stance abruptly. The owner of the Internet firm has consistently maintained that he was told by Gong to attack the NEC website.

The hacking prevented voters from accessing websites showing voter turnout as well as the location of polling stations on the election day. Opposition parties have alleged that it was to prevent young voters, who favor opposition candidates and usually vote in the morning before going to work, from checking the locations of polling stations on the NEC homepage.

While the attack was underway, Gong had six phone conversations with National Assembly Speaker and former GNP Chairman Park Hee-tae�s secretary, surnamed Kim. Gong and Kim drank together with other acquaintances at an expensive room salon in southern Seoul just hours before the attack, police said.

Gong and Kim recently quit as secretaries after the police began their investigation.

A secretary of former GNP lawmaker Gong Sung-jin also reportedly dined together with Gong and Kim one day before the by-elections. They, however, claimed that they had nothing to do with the attack.

Gong�s former boss, Rep. Choi, was one of Na�s key campaigners during the by-elections. Na ultimately lost to unified opposition candidate Park Won-soon in the race to pick new Seoul mayor.

Choi, a former reporter of the conservative daily Chosun Ilbo, also quit as the party�s public relations chief last week. He denied any involvement, saying he would give up his National Assembly seat if he was found to be lying.

[jvalmer]

I'd rather have the GNP in power than anyone on the left. But that's because the choices are dismal. As long as Korea is divided, the 'progressives' should not be in power. I do agree with the right's rhetoric towards NK, being all hard-line and trying to economically force their downfall. However, it's some of the right's post reunification hopes that have me worried (mostly the land ownership issues of former landowning NKers). Basically anything pre-1954 in NK should be annulled, it has been 60 years, get over it landowners and their descendants.

As for your beloved 'progressives', their theories all great and all... it's their pre-unification policies I don't like. Sunshine this, ignore NK's horrid human rights issues with their own citizens.