Kyrgyzstan Knocked Offline - WSJ.com

Strange days indeed

A Russian "cyber-militia" has effectively knocked the central Asian republic of Kyrgyzstan offline in recent days, according to an Internet security expert, in the latest apparent example of geopolitical tensions playing out on the Web.

Since Jan. 18, the country of 5.3 million has come under a massive cyber-attack, according to Don Jackson, director of threat intelligence at Atlanta Internet security firm SecureWorks Inc.

The denial-of-service attack -- which swamps Web sites with so many hits that they are forced to shut down -- has targeted the two main Internet service providers in the country, which account for more than 80% of Kyrgyzstan's bandwidth, according to Mr. Jackson. The episode has shut down Web sites and made emailing impossible, he said.

Kyrgyzstan Knocked Offline - WSJ.com