Education must start early
Yesterday one of the articles posted to The Register caught my eye - “Primary schools hit by smut hack“. In brief, the article describes the recent defacement of various primary school web sites (originally reported 3 days ago). Curiously, it was not the sort of direct site defacement we typically discuss on this blog (injection of some malicious code in order to infect users browsing the site). Instead it appears the attack targeted Moodle - software used to create ‘Learning Platforms’. Reports suggest the attackers were able to sneak links to pornographic sites into the search results children would see when searching for their school sites.
This is not surprising news. Any regular reader will be well aware that web sites have shown themselves to be soft targets for hackers over the past few years. It is not unlikely that school web sites (particularly for the younger years) are written and managed by non-dedicated staff (or even volunteers). Security is likely to be very low down in the priority list. Even if the site is outsourced, this does not guarantee security considerations are properly considered.
The thought of young children stumbling across pornographic sites whilst attempting to access some online learning resources is clearly abhorrent. But it is the grim reality of the internet today. And for those quick to dismiss this type of issue, just read about the recent Amero case.
We (adults, parents, teachers, local authorities, companies managing school sites) must learn from this type of case. It is vital that children learn about the darker, more sinister side of the internet. Yes, it is a magnificent resource, but it is imperative that children learn about what can go wrong, and how to prevent it. (Some form of green cross code if you like.)
The timing of this latest incident is quite timely - next Tuesday (February 10th) is Safer Internet Day. Encourage your school or college to get involved, and join in.
Readers may also find the thinkuknow site useful. Grab your kids and join Hector and friends or Jason at the CyberCafe, and you will probably learn something as well.
Posted on February 5th, 2009 by Fraser Howard, SophosLabs UKFiled under: General
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