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QNA
Ankara
Five people suspected of hacking Qatar News Agency (QNA) have been detained in Turkey.
On Friday, Attorney General HE Dr Ali bin Fetais al Marri told QNA that as part of the cooperation between Qatar and Turkey in combating cybercrime, the Turkish authorities have detained five people.
QNA website was hacked in May this year and false statements attributed to the Emir HH Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al Thani were aired on news channels in the UAE and Saudi Arabia ” despite the Qatari government's repeated rejection of the fake reports.
"Our friends in Turkey answered us a short time ago. Five people were arrested and they are being investigated. The prosecutors in Qatar are working with the Turkish authorities to follow this case," Marri said.
He said after the QNA and its social media platforms were hacked, Qatari authorities began investigations into the cybercrime.
They contacted friendly countries and asked for help on the subject as electronic crimes have no boundaries.
The hacking of QNA had triggered the ongoing Gulf crisis.
In a press conference in July, the Ministry of Interior presented evidence showing the cyberattack on the country's official media originated from the United Arab Emirates.
Officials said the investigators have found out that as early as April, hackers had already"infiltrated" the QNA network"using VPN software" and"scanned the website".
The ministry said the hackers"exploited" a loophole in the network's system, and installed"malicious programmes" which were then used to carry out the publication of the"false stories".
Addresses, passwords and emails of all the employees of the state news agency were also collected. An earlier report in the Washington Post said the UAE arranged the operation.
The US newspaper reported that information from US intelligence officials showed that senior UAE government officials discussed the planned hacks on May 23, the day before the hacking occurred.
