Hacker Cripples Hundreds of YNS-Powered Websites

A hacker who deleted the main operating files from a server of St. Catharines-based YourNameSells.com rendered useless numerous websites the server hosts, early April 2007. The websites included those of many businesses and non-profit organizations in the Niagara region.

Kelowna. B.C. computer server hosts YNS web applications and also provides services to forward e-mails. This server crashed a few times in early April this year. It was then that the compromise came to light, according to company president John Savio and, which The Tribune reported on April 26, 2007.

The YNS customer and office server in St. Catharines and the financial and customer-billing server in Toronto did not feel the impact.

On Friday, April 13, 2007, all the websites shut down eventually, said Savio. The company then set to work out a plan to restore its customers' sites. Security is their top priority.

On April 20, 2007, Savio put up a notification message for its customers on the YNS website. It said that the company had been working sincerely to find a solution and they have arrived at an imminent one. It then asked the clients to look for e-mail that would provide the details of getting back their sites online.

YNS clients in the Niagara area are Niagara Hot Tubs, Gymnastics Energy, Thorold's Trinity United Church, a weekly publication, the Niagara Falls boys and girls club, Lions Club, Fort Erie Humane Society and other non-profit groups.

Of the 553 websites the company hosts, nearly half belong to Niagara clients. The remaining is in British Columbia, New Jersey, Ohio and different parts of U.S.

Currently, eight persons are on the job to get the sites active on the Internet. These include a team of five at DotConnect.ca that is situated on Welland's King Street.

According to DotConnect president and owner Jon McGowan, there was no theft of any data. The Tribune reported this on April 26, 2007. Clients' personal data including their financial information were safe like always, McGowan said. This was possible because Savio strictly adhered to the Personal Information and Protection of Electronic Data Act of the Canadian government.

Related article: Hacker & Virus in MySpace

» SPAMfighter News - 5/3/2007