Apache open-source site hacked

The organisation responsible for the popular open-source Apache Web server software confirmed on Thursday that its servers were broken into, the second attack in May on a high-profile open-source software site.

In a notice posted on its Web site, the Apache Software Foundation said its public server -- which handles mailing lists and stores source code for all foundation projects -- was illegally accessed earlier last month. The intrusion was quickly discovered and the server was taken offline.

"There is no evidence that any source or binary code was affected by the intrusion," according to the statement.

Apache is the most popular software used to serve up Web pages. According to a study by research firm Netcraft, Apache is used about three times more often than Microsoft's Internet Information Server, though Microsoft's software is more popular for secure transactions.