Published at the Huffington Post, by Peter Finocchiaro
This post has been updated. Scroll down for the most recent information on Anonymous’ February 3 series of attacks.
Notorious hacker collective Anonymous attacked and defaced the website of the Boston Police Department Friday, apparently in retaliation for a police raid on an Occupy Boston encampment in the city’s Dewey Square on December 10.
For long stretches of the morning, the website, BPDNews.com, has loaded an Anonymous-designed web page called “Anti-Sec,” also the name of the collective’smonths-long campaign against a number of governments and corporations.
The page includes a message from the collective, titled, “Anonymous hacks Boston Police website in retaliation for police brutality at OWS,” as well as an embedded version of the KRS-One music video, “Sound of Da Police.”
A screen grab of the website at 12 p.m. Friday:
The text of the message reads thus:
Do you remember a few months ago when #antisec attaked the Boston Police and released hundred of passwords in retaliation for the brutality against Occupy Boston? They clearly ignored our warnings, because not only did they raid the camp again and kicked protesters off of public parks, but they also sent undercover TSA agents to assualt and attempt to steal from some organizers. So you get your kicks beating protesters? That’s OK; we get kicks defacing and rm’n your websites – again. BDNNews.com, the “Boston Poice Department Virtual Community” also fell to the swift merciless veangeance of the hive. Do you really want to step to this??
The portion of the letter about “undercover TSA agents” likely refers to an incident last month when a TSA air marshal accosted several members of Occupy Boston, and mugged one, just hours before the Dec. 10 Dewey Square eviction. (There’s little to suggest that the air marshal was, in fact, in the encampment at the best of the TSA.)
The department released a statement acknowledging the attack and saying that its “skillful technical staff” was focused on restoring the website.
The statement reads:
It is unfortunate that someone would go to this extent to compromise BPDNews.com, a helpful and informative public safety resource utilized daily by community members seeking up-to-date news and information about important safety matters.
Anonymous also leaked audio this morning of what it claims to be a conference call between FBI investigators and British authorities, as part of an apparent day of protest dubbed #FuckFBIFriday on Twitter.
The hacker collective had previously attacked the Boston PD’s website this past October, in the aftermath of mass arrests that garnered national attention.
UPDATE #1: Anonymous hackers also compromised the Salt Lake City Police Department’s website on Friday, gaining access to “sensitive data, including citizen complaints about drug crimes, including phone numbers, addresses and other personal information,” according to the Associated Press. The department claims that the hack was in retaliation for an anti-graffiti bill that died in the state’s senate on Thursday.
Additionally, hackers associating with Anonymous attacked the website of Greece’s justice ministry. That move was reportedly in protest against austerity measures thatinternational lenders have demanded of the beleaguered country in return for much-needed financial assistance.
Anonymous also published the names and personal information of more than 700 police officers from across the state of Texas, according to WFAA-TV. The data was stolen from the Texas Police Association’s website, reportedly in response to the news last week that a Wylie, TX, police officer was suspended from duty as part of a child pornography investigation.
UPDATE #2: Adding to a flurry of cyber-attacks Friday afternoon, Anonymous members have now reportedly hacked the website of the Washington law firm Puckett and Faraj, according to the AFP. The hackers claim they have published three gigabytes of private emails from the firm, many pertaining to Frank Wuterich, a U.S. marine (and Puckett and Faraj client) who faced a military court martial last month in connection with 2005′s Haditha massacre.
UPDATE #3: Gawker’s John Cook reports that in addition to leaking documents related to Puckett and Faraj’s defense of Frank Wuterich, Anonymous also published a number of emails pertaining to separate cases the firm has handled. Those emails, Cook writes, include sensitive information about “people that Anonymous might normally be aligned with.” That includes sexual assault victims whose names had previously been unreported.
Meanwhile, the Boston PD’s web adress is now redirecting to the organization’sFacebook page.
A little discretion from Anonymous would go a long way. Keep grabbing and releasing information – but if you can’t be bothered to make sure you aren’t doing things like releasing the info of sexual assault victims, don’t be surprised if you don’t get quite the response you wanted.
You obviously support the hacking Anonymous does but bitch about people hacking your servers? The irony of it all. An associate of mine has warned you to stop supporting the cyber terrorist group, but you obviously don’t learn. So now you are warned that we will attack you differently than just hacking your servers, maybe release info of YOUR families so they get harassed.
We are watching and with your support od Anonymous, you will fall victim the same as victims of Anonymous. Warn your families that they will be getting calls and letters to tgeir doorsteps. This is what you get for not listening to our associate. We are Shadow:even Anonymous has a shadow following
*yawn*
Once again, out of all the information that was released, the propaganda machine uses the same key words,”sensative information” “sexual assault victims”,to get the general public to side with them.The police and the media work hand and hand, police release information through the media for public outcry.(just watch the news)your name,any past offences,place of employment,even your address,it only takes an allegation of a crime.Now try to get a fair trial. The media claim the attack was in retaliation of an anti-graffiti bill that was shot down in the senate.I believe Anonymous has better reasons to crash websites over. Anonymous gives warnings before an attack,maybe the Boston PD should’nt be harassing people for standing up for their rights.If our troops are fighting other governments overseas and dying for us to live free,why do we have to fight our own government here in America for our rights it is trying to take away? Not everybody agrees with the way Anonymous works,I for one,cheer them on. Sometimes the only way to be heard,is to throw a little tea in the harbor.
It was optional, not mandatory, therefore I do not care.