Dalai Lama's Website Hacked In 'Spying Attack'

The Chinese-language website of Tibet's exiled spiritual leader has been attacked with a virus that gives hackers control over visitors' computers.

Kurt Baumgartner, a researcher at security firm Kapersky, said people should stay away from the Chinese version of the Central Tibetan Administration site until the bug is fixed.

On his blog , he said the so-called "water holing"technique had been used where hackers infect a site that is frequently visited by people whose computers they want to control.

That compromised site automatically seeks to infect the PCs of all visitors, downloading malicious software that the hackers can use to take control of their computers in what may be an attempt to spy on human rights' activists.

Tibet.net is the official site of the exiled government and it covers the parliament, cabinet, administrative departments, and public offices.

Tashi Phuntsok, a spokesman for the exiled Tibetan government, said: "Our office cannot access the website and we are trying to figure out what kind of virus is responsible for the problem."

"We are a prominent target for attacks by Chinese hackers."

It was not immediately clear who was responsible for the latest attack, but Mr Baumgartner said there was evidence to suggest the same hackers were responsible for previous breaches on the site, as well as attacks on other groups that focus on human rights in Asia.

"They have been trying repeatedly to find vulnerabilities in the site," said the security expert, who believes the malicious code works by exploiting a bug in Oracle's Java software.

Oracle has not yet commented on the claims.

The Dalai Lama fled Tibet following a failed uprising against Chinese rule in 1959. He later founded the government-in-exile in Dharamshala after being offered refuge by India.

China sees the spiritual leader as a "separatist" who incites violence in Tibet, while the Dalai Lama insists his focus is a peaceful campaign for greater autonomy for his homeland.

The cyber attack is the latest to involve human rights groups in greater China.

Human rights groups and other NGOs focused on China were hit by denial of service attacks that disrupted their websites during a spate of attacks blamed on China in 2010 and 2011.