AN INVESTIGATION IS underway after the Irish Catholic website was hacked overnight.

The main page of the site was replaced by a blue and white screen and words that said ‘Site off-line. You. Got. Taken.’ as well as the following message:

The Irish Catholic – Ireland’s biggest and best-selling Catholic newspaper since 1888 is currently hacked We should be back shortly. Thank you for your patience. And wish you to continue beliveing [sic] in your false religion.

The hacker also stated:

“Gotta love false hope”

Managing editor Garry O’Sullivan told TheJournal.ie that he wasn’t perturbed by the hacking:

I’ve been dealing with and talking about child sex abuse for the last ten years so it puts everything into perspective. It just means we need to put up our security.

He said the hacked homepage emerged when his IT department restarted the site’s server while dealing with another issue.

The IT department said that they restarted the server and that [page] was in the background and it popped up again. It looks like a residue from a previous issue. But obviously it is of concern that somebody has been hacking the site.

He added:

The Irish Catholic and our readers have put up with a lot more over the last few years than hacking.

Mr O’Sullivan also said the fact the hacker chose the website “is a testament to the profile of the paper” but added that “any idiot can slag off a person for their religious beliefs”.

“I would prefer they write a letter to the editor with a more reasonable argument,” he suggested.

In April of this year, the details of more than 300 subscribers to the horse trade magazine The Irish Field – which is owned by the Agricultural Trust, which also owns the Irish Catholic – were hacked and released.

Read: Personal details of Irish Field readers hacked and posted online>