Islamic
computer hackers tried to disrupt the Vatican web site earlier this
week, but failed, according to a report in the ANSA news service.

In
an online forum for militant Muslims, a group announced plans for an
assault on the Vatican computer network, which was said to be a form of
retribution for Pope Benedict’s criticism of Islam in his Regensburg
speech. Police later confirmed that there had been a concerted effort
by hackers to penetrate the Vatican site, but computer-security experts
were able to detect and repel the attack.

The
nature of the attempted attack was not clear. Some observers in Rome
believed that the Islamic group was planning a "denial of service"
attack, in which a web site is bombarded with many thousands of
simultaneous visits, overloading the available bandwidth and making it
impossible for others to reach the site.

In
fact the Vatican site has functioned normally, with minimal noticeable
slowdowns, through the week. Vatican security personnel are remaining
vigilant in case of another effort by the hackers.