Bobby Wood at the Lexington Park branch of Southern Tire got a strange phone call around 1:45 p.m. Monday. A customer called the branch to let them know that their website – www.southerntire.net – had been hacked by a Turkish terrorist organization. “The customer called me and said she thought we ought to know,” he said, “and I said I sure appreciated it but I took it kind of light-hearted because I thought it might be someone playing a joke.”
 |
| Southern Tire’s website after being hacked |
Bobby finished dealing with some customers and then checked the company’s website – and got quite a surprise.
“I called our headquarters in Waldorf to let them know. We really can’t tell you much, and the head office has been aware of this for even less time than we have,” he told The Bay Net.
The website now displays messages in Arabic, Turkish and English, and plays Islamic music. The hacker(s), going by “Alp Turk Tegin, Warrior One Turk,” have attacked the site “For Islam,” and claim “Our war will continue against the ones who are against the real religion Islam.”
Southern Tire and Auto Centers are a Southern Maryland Corportation with their main office in Waldorf, and other branches in Lexington Park, La Plata, Charlotte Hall, Mechanicsville, Oxon Hill, Prince Frederick, and Fort Washington.
Update: Later Monday evening the website was restored and the terrorist messages removed.