Attrition.org, a US-based organisation that tracks hacking, reported the incident and captured a screenshot of the defaced site, they said. The organisation is cited by security consultants as a reliable source of information.

Singapore's National Computer Board, which oversees government websites, said an assessment found no damage but investigations were continuing. The government site hacked serves as a link to information, like official press releases and ministers' speeches and enables visitors to file police reports, apply for scholarships and register births.

Attrition.org said the contents of the government page were removed for a whileand replaced with, among other words, ``Site edited by flipz. Why? Because I can.'' Someone calling himself flipz had also vandalised several government and military sites in theUS.

In a ruling last month, a judge replaced a teenage hacker's 30-month sentence with a four-month jail term, following an appeal by government lawyers.