PLEASE READ THIS, My Appologies Everyone!

[Unimatic1140]

Hi everyone, so in my nearly 21 years of running this website for the first time ever we got seriously hacked. Russian hackers (yes IP addresses confirmed the attack came from central Moscow) somehow gained access to the website and deleted everything from the server on automaticwasher.org. I spent quite a long time on with tech support and they helped get things under control however with the entire site files completely gone I had to restore the site from the latest backup. With over half a million upload member post photos alone, not to mention all the other files it going to take nearly 2 days to restore the site. I have the site up and running now, but it's going to take well into tomorrow to get all the pictures copied back onto the server. So many posts will be missing pictures until they are all re-copied back up to the website server.

Why the hackers wanted to delete everything from the site is beyond me, it would make more sense to not make yourself known if you're trying to run something nefarious from someone else's server and stay under the radar. If hackers can hack the Department of Defense network, they sure would have no problem with little mom & pop websites like aw. I sure hope this doesn't happen again but I can't promise that. I don't think the hackers specifically targeted aw, I do believe they casted a wide net out there and we got caught in it this time unfortunately.

My apologies for the site being down everyone, I did my best to get it back up as quickly as I possibly could. Since it's been restored there may be some bugs in bringing it back up, I'm not sure but time will tell. FYI, while all the data is update to date I do believe the last 10 days of pictures uploaded to the most recent postings were not backed up and will be lost.

 

[Chetlaham]

I can't thank you enough!

Good always triumphs over evil. No need to apologize, as it was not you who hacked and deleted the site!

You deserve thanks and praise for restoring a site with over 1 million posts in less than 24 hours, a substantial feat, in addition to having the contingency planning foresight to back-up the entire site. Something that honestly would have slipped my mind. Despite me knowing you always need an independent back-up.

With that said, I can't thank you enough for all you've done and the fact you are always on top of things 24 hours a day, 7 days a week 365 days a year. I acknowledge and appreciate this in full. I love this site, and the fact it was gone for 20 hours made me feel a void making me realize just how much I tend to take the wholesome things in life for granted.

I hope all the bugs get worked out with ease, and I hope this site never gets hacked again.

 

[luxflairguy]

Robert! YOU ARE THE BEST! Kudo's for your work! Greg

 

[appnut]

Robert you are always so gracious!! I personally don't think an apology was needed. This was something beyond control. You mean so much to all of us and not having access to this sight for about 24 hours reinforces just how much a part of my life is this site. Thank you for everything you do seems such an insufficient sentiment.

 

[turquoisedude]

Echoing what Bob said - no apology is necessary.  This was completely out of your control!  I hope my dissing Kruschev on an old thread about a GE washer/dryer combo seen in one of the "Kitchen Debates" in 1959 was not responsible... LOL 

 

Great work as always, Robert.  I am having flashbacks of times in my former life when we had to do complete system restores to recover after a serious system failure, so I have an idea of what kind of work is involved!

 

[parunner58]

Thank you Robert for all your hard work. Step back; breathe; everything will be fine. I love coming online here a few times a day and reading all the fun stuff everyone does. I met a few friends online from here and some in person.

I was in IT for over 28 years and have been in similar situations, but mine were not caused by a hacker but system conversions. I remember it as if it was yesterday. We were converting the entire company from Lotus cc:Mail running on a Novell Server to Lotus Notes on a Microsoft Server. On April 12 just after 18:00 We thought we lost the entire corporate email system we had for the past 3 years. Job ran 20 minutes and said complete. Wow that was fast. Lotus Server, noting there, Novell server, everything gone. Luckily our parent company had an unlimited 24x7 Service Contract with Lotus and we were included in it. Called, Lotus investigated and OH! there is a slight bug fix we need to give you. New script ran until midnight and everything was back. I retired from IT in 2006 not sure If I would want to be still working in it. Did some consulting for a while. No just like helping out friends and family.

 

[Ultramatic]

 

 

Thank you Robert for your diligent work. Absolutely no need to apologize. No words can express how grateful so many of us are for this site. Once again THANK YOU!

 

[circlew]

Robert, no need to apologize for something you have no control over. Thanks for all your effort getting it back in order so quickly.

 

[mattl]

Robert, thanks for all your efforts, no need to apologise.  It's good to know this vast compendium of knowledge and a bit of silliness is safe, I'm sure by this point it is a massive database and requires much backup space.

 

[rickr]

Many thanks Robert! And also, thank you for keeping this site going, after all these years.

 

[peteski50]

Website!

Robert no need for your apology! It by no means is your fault. I appreciate all your hard work getting the site going again. I was lost without it. Thank you for all you do to keep the club going!
Best Wishes
Peter

 

[rp2813]

Ahead of Schedule!

Robert, you facilitated a remarkably fast recovery, which serves as a testament to your level of expertise in this field!

 

You are highly appreciated by so many of us here.  There was no need to apologize for the acts of Russian thugs.  The old USSR is still very much alive and well under the leadership of the last couple of decades.  I hope you don't get hit with another headache like this, courtesy of those slobs.

 

Ralph

 

 

 

 

 

[angus]

Absolutely no need for any apologies, Robert. Your commitment and contributions are legendary and maybe we don't say it often enough but you are so appreciated for all you do.

Unfortunately, this is emblematic of the world we live in today where so much is out of our control. Many, many thanks!!!

 

[whirlykenmore78]

Robert:

No need for apologies, this was not your fault. Thanks for all you do for us.
WK78

 

[pulltostart]

Robert,

We're very fortunate to have you in charge.  I'm not sure anyone else would have pulled off such a quick repair.  Thank you!

 

I tell myself every day that I'm not addicted to aw.org and that I can quit anytime, but I still don't want to be forced to find out right now.

 

lawrence

 

[repairguy]

Thanks Robert!

 

[qsd-dan]

Incredibly fast recovery! 

 

[imperial70]

Sorry they caused you so much extra work. I know you're a busy person without this nonsense...

Did they get our personal information, like email address? Starting with email they can cause enough discomfort. Be sure to use very secure email passwords.

 

[goatfarmer]

Thanks for all you do!

 

[ea56]

Thanks Robert!!!

No need to apologize! You do so much for all of us to help bring this wonderful group of friends with many common interests together. I can’t thank you enough for all you do! I felt like an addict that couldn’t get my fix while the site was down, LOL.

I sure hope that this doesn’t happen again, its way too much extra work for you to have to take on. I for one would be more that happy to make an extra contribution if you were to make that option available and if it would help you out with any extra expenses that you may have incurred to get AW.org back online.

A Great Big Hug to You!
Eddie