Computer Lessons for Terrorists.(threat of digital sabotage; the Muslim Hackers Club)(Brief Article)

Al Qaeda terrorists interested in computer hacking are just clicks away from a crash course in digital sabotage. A Web site operated by the Muslim Hackers Club offers tutorials in cybermischief: viruses, hacking strategems, network "phreaking" and secret codes. It also features links to militant Islamic and cyberprankster sites, including U.S. sites that purport to disclose sensitive information like "code names" and radio frequencies used by the Secret Service.

So far damage has been limited to the relatively harmless defacing of sites. Pro bin Laden tirades have been posted on various government Web sites, even one operated by the General Accounting Office, the investigative arm of the U.S. Congress. But White House officials worry that Islamic hackers will sooner or later graduate from pranks and vandalism to cyberterrorism. Computer terrorists, experts say, could cause widespread disruption, or even loss of life, by interfering with essential services like telephone networks and power grids. Earlier this month the FBI and Defense Intelligence Agency issued a secret warning that the Muslim Hackers Club included experts who had conducted classes on how to mount terror attacks on computer ...