Comcast.net was hit by hackers Wednesday night after attackers were able to get a hold of passwords used to alter domain-name registration information, reports InfoWorld. Customers were unable get to their Comcast e-mail and account records.

No one is sure how the hackers, known as "Defiant" and "EBK", were able to get the Comcast password. The pair won't give specifics, but says they used a combination of social engineering and a technical hack to access Comcast's domain management console at Network Solutions. According to this Wired article, Defiant and EBK actually contacted a Comcast manager to tell him what they had done. He hung up on them.

Could the attack be a response to the Comcast-BitTorrent saga, as this TorrentFreak blog suggests? The hackers haven't indicated this, but Comcast certainly hasn't made any friends by blocking traffic.

Comcast says users' information was not compromised in the attack, which occurred between 11 p.m. Eastern time Wednesday and 12:30 a.m. Thursday. The company has notified law enforcement authorities. But it might not be a bad idea for customers to change their e-mail password and run anti-spyware software, just in case.