Successful hacking group targets Swiss towns, companies, hospitals

Cybercrime is a growing phenomenon in Switzerland, as in other parts of the world. Keystone / A4796/_silas Stein

A group that hacked a Swiss town’s database and posted sensitive information on the Darknet has threatened to target other municipalities, companies or hospitals.

The Swiss newspaper Le Tempsreported on MondayExternal link that it had established contact with the hackers, who call themselves “Vice Society”.

In May, the group obtained information, including personal email accounts, passwords and logins, from the town of Rolle in southwestern Switzerland. Thousands of files were posted on the Darknet – a secretive part of the internet often used by criminals – when ransom demands were rejected.

Vice Society told Le Temps that it would continue to attack any target that showed vulnerabilities. “If we have access to other Swiss cities, we will attack them too. It doesn’t matter to us whether it’s a business, a hospital, a city,” the hackers said in written replies to questions.

It is “Rolle’s problem” if criminals now use information posted on the Darknet, they added. “We download data from every business we hack. If the data or the company is interesting, we publish it.”

This confirmed statements made last weekExternal link to Swiss public broadcaster RTS.

Rolle has filed a criminal complaint having enlisted the help of Vaud cantonal police and the federal cybercrime unit. The Rolle authorities say they have secured their network following the hack and are examining the material on the Darknet.

As in common with other countries, Switzerland has experienced a rise in cybercrime with companies such as Stadler Rail, defence contractor Ruag and price comparison website Comparis suffering attacks.