West Hollywood furniture store website hacked by group claiming to be ISIS

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Monday, March 9, 2015
West Hollywood store website hacked by group claiming to be ISIS
A West Hollywood furniture store's website was hacked by a group claiming to be the terror group ISIS.

WEST HOLLYWOOD, Calif. (KABC) -- West Hollywood furniture store owner Olga Rechdouni woke up Sunday morning to a frightening discovery. Her website, Duroque.com, had been hacked by a group claiming to be the terror group ISIS.

Across the front page of her website read the words, "Hacked by Islamic State (ISIS). We are everywhere. :)"

"I'm scared. I'm really, really scared, because I don't know what to think. I don't understand why this happened to us, a small business in West Hollywood," said Rechdouni, who designs custom furniture and dog beds.

Ray Galan, who handles the website for Duroque Interior Design, said he was shocked to see the propaganda.

"Personally, I think it might be somebody pretending to be ISIS to try to scare the business," said Galan, who noted he's working with the FBI on the incident.

"We're aware of these reported intrusions here and elsewhere but we're not commenting on specific cases under review. Anyone who is victimized with a similar intrusion should contact the FBI," the FBI released in a statement.

Identical hacks have been reported at small businesses in Ohio, Montana, Pennsylvania and other states.

"I thought it was a joke. You don't really think about ISIS attacking you here," said Phil Laboon, CEO of Eyeflow, whose Pittsburgh buisness was hacked on Saturday.

To prepare for attacks, Galan recommends backing up website files and using a reputable hosting company.

As for Duroque, no customer data or administrative files were taken, Galan said. By Sunday night, the website had been fixed.

"It's very weird. It's very strange and, at the same time, it's very scary," Rechdouni said.

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