Foxconn said to have been hacked by group critical of working conditions

IDG News Service - Hackers claimed to have stolen internal data from Apple supplier Foxconn, and leaked the information online, in response to media reports of poor working conditions at the electronics manufacturer's factories in China.

The hacker group, Swagg Security, announced the attack in a Twitter message on Wednesday, and also leaked data stolen from the Foxconn site to The Pirate Bay. It said the data included user names and passwords. "The passwords inside these files could allow individuals to make fraudulent orders under big companies like Microsoft, Apple, IBM, Intel, and Dell," the hackers said in a message on Pastebin.

Foxconn declined to comment on the attack, stating that the company "does not comment on matters of internal network security." Two service websites used by Foxconn's customers to place orders were down on Thursday.

Swagg Security later updated their Twitter account to state: "Seems like Foxconn admins are angry,A services.foxconn.com was taken down by them. Guess you guys made one to many orders".

Foxconn, a major contract manufacturer of electronics including Apple's iPhone, has faced negative publicity repeatedly since 2010 following a string of suicides at the company's Chinese facilities. The spotlight was again on the company last month after The New York Times documented the unsafe working conditions and long hours employees have to endure at Foxconn's factories.

An online petition from customers, demanding that Apple respond to recent criticisms of worker abuse in its supplier factories, and change working conditions at supplier factories in time for the launch of the next version of its iPhone, is scheduled to be delivered to the company on Thursday.