Hackers on the prowl in Singapore

WHEN Singapore raised eyebrows earlier this year with a contest for computer hackers, none of the 40,000 participants was able to pocket the top prize of US$10,000.

They all failed in the competition -- part of an exposition highlighting Internet securit shut down after it was hacked into and its home page defaced.

The site was none other than a Ministry of Law information service on the Internet and was the third strike on government or Singapore-related websites in two months.

The other websites were linked to official press releases and ministers' speeches, education services and a private television news and information network.

In cases uncovered so far, those involved were young hackers who had mostly wanted to brag about their ability to penetrate computer systems.

Though they are not seen as in the same league as career crackers -- those who break computer codes and earn a living by stealing and spying -- the Singapore authorities are not treating them lightly.

"The government considers hacking a serious crime. It is anti-social, and should not be viewed as heroic acts or mere pranks," said the National Computer Board, which oversees government websites.

"Like vandalism and robbery, hacking can cause costly damage to victims," said the board, which is probing hacking cases together with the police.

Singapore's judiciary has also hardened its stance towards hacking, which analysts warn if not nipped in the bud could harm the island state's bid to become Asia's e-commerce hub.

In a landmark ruling last month, Singapore's top judge Yong Pung How sentenced a schoolboy to four months in jail for hacking, replacing a lower court ruling ordering him just to undergo a 30-month probation.

The 17-year-old had hacked into the servers of two local companies, including those of cable TV provider Singapore Cable Vision (SCV), to download files.

Judge Yong said probation orders, usually given to young offenders of minor crime, were not effective for computer crime.

Under such orders, the young offenders were confined to their homes at night to prevent them from getting into trouble but this was actually an ideal environment for computer hackers, Yong said.

As an alternative form of punishment for the juvenile hackers, a Singapore university professor proposes the "electronic death penalty."

This means an offender is banned from Internet access by blocking his subscription to any Internet service provider, Nanyang Technology University's associate professor Ang Peng Hwa told the Straits Times daily.

Some shift the blame for hacking onto software makers who are not security savvy and inefficient computer systems managers tasked with supervising websites.

"When a hacker breaks into a system, the systems designer who has not taken the trouble to ensure that security is sound, is also responsible for compromising the integrity of the system," computer engineer Tan Song Tiu said in a letter published in the Straits Times.

A recent check by Singapore information technology security firm Infinitum on nearly 8000 servers hosting local websites found that one fifth are using software that does not have the latest security features.

This can make them vulnerable to hackers who have kept up with the times, experts say.