MI6 hackers replace bomb recipes with cake recipes

Bomb recipes in an al-Qaeda magazine have been replaced with cake recipes by MI6 hackers. Instead of instructions for making explosives, prospective terrorists were instead presented with a web page for the 'Best Cupcakes in America'.

The Telegraph reports that the original magazine featured instructions for making a pipe bomb out of sugar and included articles by Osama bin Laden and his deputy, along with a piece titled 'What to expect in Jihad.'

The 67-page colour magazine is produced by Anwar al-Awlaki, a radical preacher and his associate Samir Khan of North Carolina, both thought to be in Yemen and connected to known terrorists. US government officials say 'the packaging of this magazine may be slick, but the contents are as vile as the authors.'

This hack formed part of a cyber-warfare operation launched by MI6 and GCHQ intended to disrupt al-Qaeda attempts to recruit individual terrorists. British intelligence is allegedly continuing to target the online publishers of the magazine as it is considered a powerful propaganda tool.

Former CIA analyst, Bruce Reidel, said the magazine 'was clearly intended for the aspiring jihadist in the US or UK.'

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