KDF Twitter account hacked yet again

The official Twitter accounts of the Kenyan Defence Forces (KDF) and its spokesman Major Emannuel Chirchir were hacked for the second time late Monday, hours after they were restored.

Government officials had announced they had reinstalled both accounts after contacting the Twitter company.

But two hours later, the group dubbed Anonymous claimed fresh control, raising questions on the seriousness of the hacking and alleged restoration.

The group also claimed to have hacked various State department websites and continued to post insults and offensive material on the sites on Monday night.

The military and Chirchir have been using the accounts to update the public on progress made in Somalia where Kenyan soldiers are fighting Al Shabaab militants.

Experts said the hacking could have been done intentionally by security agents who plan a major clampdown on social media, but police have denied the claims.

Police, the military and intelligence officials pursuing the matter said they had "failed to establish if the hacker is in the country" even as experts said the authorities' claims were strange.

"We are trying to see where these people are," said Department of Defence Spokesman Bogita Ongeri.

The accounts were still in the hands of the hackers yesterday, with hundreds of retweets and new followers on the information being posted.

The group had on Monday also defaced the website of the National Environment Trust Fund (Netfund) of the Environment ministry. Curiously, the imposters seemed to master local politics given the kind of information tweeted.

"So much poverty in Africa while you are wasting money in guns," one of the tweets read on the verified @kdfinfo account following the breach.

Experts said the incident should serve as an example to individuals and institutions on the need to protect their accounts.