Israel's deputy foreign minister has compared a recent cyber-attack, which saw thousands of credit cards compromised, to terrorism and threatened retaliation against the perpetrators.
A member of the Saudi hacking collective Group-XP claimed last week to have posted the personal information, including card details, of around 400,000 Israelis stolen from various Web sites.
According to Reuters, Israel's deputy foreign minister Danny Ayalon said in a speech that such attacks are "a breach of sovereignty comparable to a terrorist operation, and must be treated as such".
Local reports suggest that the hacker, using the handle OxOmar, may be a 19-year-old from the United Arab Emirates currently studying and working in Mexico.
However, in his speech Ayalon said that Israel has not discounted the possibility that a group "more organised and sophisticated ... than a lone youth" was responsible, adding "Israel has active capabilities for striking at those who are trying to harm it, and no agency or hacker will be immune from retaliatory action".
Israel vows to hit back after credit cards hacked - Reuters