ROAD TOWN, Tortola, BVI, 7th August 2011 - As a result of the hacking, VINO was out of service for the most part of Thursday preventing the over seven thousand readers per day worldwide from being able to access the popular news site.
The problem was discovered by VINO’s technical team both locally and overseas as calls came in all day from many readers who could not access the online news site.
VINO’s Editor in Chief, Carmilita Jamieson offers her sincere apologies to all the readers and advertisers for the temporary shutdown of the site.
Local laws for cyber space
It remains unclear whether the hackers are local or foreign, but they were able to disable VINO for most of today, the site known for its accurate breaking news, innovation and for being fair and balance.
A spokeswoman for VINO’s Board of Directors said that currently in the Virgin Islands, there are no specialized laws to address this as the government will have to rely on the tort laws. The Telecommunications Act does not address this issue, unlike other developed countries where advance cyber laws are in place. The spokeswoman said a report will be filed with the United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC) as they are taking this matter “very seriously”.
Virgin Islands News Online has the reputation for being innovative, fair and balanced while covering a variety of local, regional and international news.
If it’s from a local entity, the local technical team with support from VINO’s overseas partners, have begun a trace to see if they can identify the computer “who have engaged in such a cowardly act” the spokesperson continued. The Spokeswoman said she is not prepared to discuss new security measures that were put in place.
Virgin Islands News Online
VINO turned one year old on March 1, 2011 and is a subsidiary of its parent company, Advance Marketing and Professional Services. In its one year plus life, it has certainly made significant strides or even a splash in the local online news competitive market.
The online news, which prided itself on being innovative, fair and balanced, was founded by Julian Willock, a senior government official, and Angela Burns, a veteran media practitioner who has worked for several local, regional and international news agencies. Mr. Willock is no longer a part of the company, and Ms. Burns is a consultant to its Board of Directors.
VINO has distinguished itself both locally and regionally, covering a variety of local, regional and international news. It has gained its popularity, for most often being first with breaking news, and with providing frequent and daily updates, seven days a week, with accurate details.
VINO remains one of the few online news with a dedicated sports reporter, covering a variety of local sports, from horse racing to cricket, basketball to sailing, track and field and even the progress being made by our local college student athletes at American and European Colleges and Universities.
Article taken from Virgin Islands News Online - http://www.virginislandsnewsonline.com
British Virgin Islands News