Freenode users need to change password after irc network hack

The administrators of Freenode, the network of irc servers with the most users, have discovered that unauthorized access has been made to some of the systems. All users of the largest irc network should change their passwords as a precaution.

Freenode administrators discovered during the night from Saturday to Sunday that a single IRC server had been broken into by an unknown party. After investigation, more servers were found to have similar problems. The administrators then took those systems offline.

“Since network traffic can be eavesdropped, we recommend that everyone change their NickServ password as a precautionary measure,” the administrators write. The Freenode team isn’t giving more details about the hack yet, but they promise to come up with more updates.

It is not the first time that Freenode has suffered a hack. In 2006, a hacker alias Ratbert managed to hijack large parts of the network, take over administrator rights, including those of founder Robert Levin, and send exploits to users via dcc send.