TMCnet News

Internet prank targets Berlusconi days before election
[April 07, 2006]

Internet prank targets Berlusconi days before election


The Associated Press

An apparent Internet prank targeting Silvio Berlusconi days before a general election is causing a Google (News - Alert) search of the words "wretched" and "failure" to bring up the Italian premier's CV posted on the government's official Web site.



Italy's telecommunications watchdog body said Friday it has received dozens of complaints about the trick, which causes those entering the Italian words for "wretched" and "failure" into a search engine to bring up a link to the site.

The prank comes at the end of a divisive and bitter campaign pitting Berlusconi, a conservative media mogul, against his center-left opponent, Romano Prodi. Elections are scheduled for Sunday and Monday.


Italy's communications authority said it alerted the postal police, which was investigating the prank.

The ANSA news agency quoted the man in charge of the government's official Web site, Fabrizio Casinelli, as saying that government technicians had alerted Google of the problem.

[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]