Expect more Web hacking if US strikes Syria: cybersecurity expert

The Syrian hacker group that has taken credit for causing outages on the websites of the New York Times and other news organizations probably will increase its activity if the US launches military strikes on the Middle Eastern nation, a cybersecurity expert said.

The Syrian Electronic Army wants to keep people from reading what it views as negative information about the regime of President Bashar Assad, which it supports, said Adam Meyers, vice president of intelligence for CrowdStrike, an Internet security firm. The group does so by launching hacking attacks on news and social media sites. "They’re gearing up to continue the campaign, and if the hammer starts to come down on the current regime, they’re going to start desperately trying to provide positive messaging and negatively impact those speaking badly about the regime," Meyers said.