Pope recruits online guardians

The Pope is in need of something more than celestial assistance to protect his website.

The Vatican has hired security experts to thwart hackers and fend off viruses aimed at infecting its website, which launched on Christmas Day in 1995.

Vatican.va is subjected to around 10,000 viruses a month and at least 30 hack attacks every day - mostly from the US. Perhaps they want to make the site even more holy!

"Young Americans are the most common and aggressive of hackers around the world seeking to cross the Vatican's e-borders," said Vatican spokesman Archbishop Claudio Celli.

"Fortunately, up to now no-one has managed to penetrate the Pope's site thanks to a highly efficient team of specialists charged with anitvirus protection who have always managed to block hacker's emails," he added.

At the end of last month, the Vatican's 500-year-old art collection was put online. At the new Vatican Museums website, aimed at attracting tourists from around the world, you can tour the dozen museums and galleries of the Vatican.