Hackers vandalized the websites of the Ministry of Labor and the Saudi National Society for Human Rights early Tuesday morning. Visitors to the Labor ministry's home page (www.mol.gov.sa) were greeted by a message in Saudi dialect that read: “We are fed up with unemployment. Maybe you will hear this time.” Upon contacting the email that had been placed on the the Ministry of labor's website, the alleged owner of the email address, who identified himself only as Ammar in his message signature, said he had nothing to do with the hacking. “Someone else is using my email address,” he said, expressing paranoia that the Saudi Gazette's inquiry could be another hack. “I'm being wrongfully dragged into this, and I have no idea who it is that did this.” The ministry has the daunting task of finding employment for hundreds of thousands of young Saudis each year, most of whom graduate in subjects that have no relevance to the job market. Unemployment in the Kingdom is officially at 11.2 percent though private estimates are far higher. Saudis, men and women, between the ages of 20 and 24 account for 44 percent of jobless citizens. And some 38 percent of Saudis below the age of 18 will enter the job market soon. The message on the hacked website of the Saudi National Society for Human Rights (www.nshrsa.org) was from a “PALESTINIAN HACKER.” It contained a long “wake-up call” in a Palestinian dialect, reminding Arabs of the ongoing human rights violations in Gaza and Jerusalem. The same website was hacked by “Dark Master” earlier this week, who expressed dissatisfaction with Saudi society. It is not uncommon for official or popular websites in any country to come under hacker attack and the long list of victims include the US Department of Homeland Security and USA Today newspaper. __
