WASHINGTON, Sept. 25 (UPI) -- The FBI warned Wednesday that some protesters might try to launch cyberattacks to disrupt computer systems, even as others try to tie up traffic in downtown Washington this weekend in demonstrations against the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.
The demonstrators in the streets will be the concern of the Washington Metropolitan Police, an FBI spokesman said, and there is no "specific and credible" information on terrorism or weapons of mass destruction.
But any threat to computer infrastructure is an FBI matter.
"There's no real indication or threat that we're aware of, there's just a precedent that's been set" during past protests, FBI spokesman Paul Bresson said.
"Any time there's a large gathering or protest of some type, there's always a potential for destruction and vandalism, whether that occurs on the streets ... or a disturbance on the Internet."
Bresson said it was important to get out the word because many of the companies that might be hit by such an intrusion might not even be aware that the protest was taking place during the annual meetings of the IMF and the World Bank.
Warnings about possible disruptions were posted on the FBI's National Infrastructure Protection Center Web site earlier this week.
"The use of hacktivism" -- a combination of hacking and activism -- "has been noted in protest activities since the Electronic Disturbance Theater endorsed a series of so-called network-direct actions against Web sites of the Mexican government in 1998," the site said.
"Although there has been no direct cyber threat against the International Monetary Fund and World Bank meetings during the week of September 23, 2002, several hacker groups may attempt to conduct cyber protests during the meetings."
As they have in the past, thousands of protesters are expected to turn out near the Washington headquarters of the IMF and the World Bank. The FBI site said the "protesters represent a loose alliance of groups that have environmental, anti-globalization, debt-relief, or human-rights agendas.
"Although they are not a unified grouping, these protestors have grown more familiar with each other during several past protests. This may give rise to coordinated action during the upcoming protests."
The NIPC recommended constant monitoring of systems during the period of protest to detect intruders.
Meanwhile, Washington police are warning commuters that up to 20,000 protesters are expected.
Some protest leaders have been urging demonstrators to block downtown intersections and slow down traffic on the Capital Beltway, a multi-lane highway that circles the city.
