Baidu, China's leading Internet search company, has a "plausible" case against its U.S.-based domain registry for allegedly allowing a hacking attack that left the site disabled and defaced, a U.S. judge ruled Thursday.
The order, signed by Judge Denny Chin of the U.S. District Court for Southern New York, allows Baidu to proceed with a lawsuit it filed against Register.com in January. Baidu's suit accuses Register.com of breach of contract, gross negligence, and recklessness related to a January 11 hack attack that left Baidu disabled for several hours. Visitors to the site during those hours were redirected to a site where a group calling itself the "Iranian Cyber Army" claimed responsibility for the attack.

"I hold that Baidu has alleged sufficient facts in its complaint to give rise to a plausible claim of gross negligence or recklessness," Chin said in his ruling. "If these allegations are proven, then Register failed to follow its own security protocols and essentially handed over control of Baidu's account to an unauthorized intruder, who engaged in cyber vandalism."

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