Bangkok: Hackers saying they are protesting the passage of a bill restricting internet freedom have been attacking Thai government computer servers, temporarily disabling public access and reportedly copying restricted documents.
A Facebook group called for people to deny access to government sites by repeatedly reloading them, a simple version of a distributed denial of service, or DDoS, attack.
The tactic apparently forced the Defense Ministry website to be temporarily offline yesterday. Other reported targets included the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society, the Prime Minister's Office and the Office of the National Security Council.
'blackplans,' a hacker identifying himself on Twitter as part of the informal activist network Anonymous, posted screenshots on Friday of what he said were documents taken from government websites in protest.
The new law would allow Thailand authorities to intercept private communication and to censor websites without a court order.
"The bill is very broad and open to interpretation and we will have to see how the government will implement these laws," said Arthit Suriyawongkul of the Thai Netizen Network, which promotes online freedom.
A small public street protest occurred in Bangkok on Sunday.
The bill was approved by the military-appointed legislature in a unanimous vote last Friday despite significant opposition. Critics say the new legislation could be used to silence critics of the military regime, which overthrew a civilian government in 2014.
