Anonymous targets websites Brazil's top financial institutions

PanARMENIAN.Net - The hacking group Anonymous Brazil has targeted the websites of several of Brazil's top financial institutions, including Banco Bradesco and Banco do Brasil, with distributed denial-of-service attacks, leaving the sites in the dark, the Associated Press reported.

The operation, known as #OpWeeksPayment on Twitter, has cited issues with the government and capitalists as a motive for going after the websites, according to the group's Twitter account. The website of Banco do Brasil, the most recent institution to be targeted, was offline as of 3 p.m. ET Feb. 1.

On Jan. 31, the website of Banco Bradesco was attacked, and it was still down as of 3 p.m. ET Feb. 1. In a message posted on Bradesco's Twitter, the company explained, "The bank's website had moments of flashing with a volume of hits above average. The measures for standardization are being adopted."

Earlier in the week, the website of Itau Unibanco Banco Multiplo SA, Brazil's largest private sector bank, was attacked by Anonymous Brazil, but it has since been brought back online, according to the Associated Press.

Anonymous Brazil hinted at its attacks earlier this week on Twitter, writing, "Hey, have you paid your bills ... The most anticipated week of the month is coming! Where to spend your $ $ $?"

The Brazilian Federation of Banks posted a statement calling for a law that criminalizes electronic attacks and fraud.

In the message, the federation explains, "Attacks on websites of banks, if successful, would hit and damage the population using electronic services to obtain information and conduct transactions. The passage of a law on the subject, which is being discussed in Congress for several years, would help to combat this type of conduct."