Idaho’s state computer network is “constantly under attack,” according to Gov. Butch Otter’s office, and that’s why Otter has named a new Cybersecurity Cabinet Task Force, chaired by Lt. Gov. Brad Little, to strengthen the state’s protections against computer hackers. “Every day we’re being probed in some fashion, facing some sort of cyber threat,” said Jon Hanian, Otter’s press secretary. “They’re getting more and more sophisticated.”

Idaho hasn’t suffered any damage from hackers so far, according to Bill Farnsworth, who is with the Office of the Chief Information Officer in the state Department of Administration. But last November, the Idaho Supreme Court’s website was briefly defaced, prompting the state to take it down for a prompt cleanup and updates. According to news reports at the time, the court’s website was replaced with a dancing stick figure, an expletive, and the words “Hani Xavi Tunisian Hackers.”

“The first thing we do is pull the plug,” Farnsworth said. “It was back up in less than two hours,” with all signs of the hack removed.

Then, on July 1, unauthorized access was detected to the server of another state agency’s website. “They didn’t actually do anything,” Farnsworth said. “I don’t know if we just got to it early or if they were just looking or what it was. But we detected access.” You can read my full Sunday column here at spokesman.com.