http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20051030...a_051030221240

JERUSALEM (AFP) - A concerned Israeli has thwarted the army's latest anti-militant initiative by hacking its 'rocket hotline' set up so that Palestinians in Gaza can rat on those firing projectiles at Israel, the Yediot Aharonot daily reported.


Following a week of multiple Israeli air strikes targeting rocket-firing militants in northern Gaza, the air force tried a new tactic: dropping leaflets encouraging locals to anonymously snitch on any rocket-toting militants.

You fully understand the damage that the rocket fire beside your homes causes you," the flyer says in Arabic. "Now every resident can help defend himself and his family from the damage caused by the rocket shooters!

"Don't hesitate! To prevent rocket fire dial 054 691 2273 and give information about the activity of those people."

But within hours, soldiers monitoring the 'rocket hotline' found they couldn't access their voicemail after a concerned citizen hacked the system and changed the access codes.

It appears the officials within the army's unit for State of Mind Operations, had forgotten to change the default code to access the voicemail system, making it an easy target for anyone curious to listen in.

"I changed the code because I didn't want the terror organisations to listen to the messages because at the beginning of every message, the voicemail system cites the phone number from which it was received," the concerned hacker told the paper.

"I was afraid the terrorists would be able to identify the callers and would try to hurt them."

Red-faced military officials are still waiting for the hacker to give them the new access codes.

There's probably better ways of changing it then hacking into the system. Maybe speaking to a soldier?

I would be quite interested to hear how successful this hotline is, in an ideal situation (with perfect anonymity of course!) it would be a good measure of how much support the terrorist actions have among the civilian population. Do the Palestinians likely to be in the targeted neighbourhoods have telephones?

[ 10-31-2005, 07:46 PM: Message edited by: shamrock_uk ]

I recall at least one instance last year when a Palestinian family was attacked because they wouldn't let militants attack from their yard, the chance to anonymously report similar events without threat of reprisal from either side seems like it could be a good way to begin turning public sentiment against the so called liberators.

Shamrock your PM box is full.

All fixed, didn't realise I had that many PM's in there!