News Archive - 2013-12 (December 2013)
2013-12-05 Anonymous joining fight in the Ukraine
Ukrainian version:
http://anoninsiders.net/anonymous-ukrainian-pr-2238/
To People of the Ukraine, we are anonymous.
To politicians, police, and the government of Ukraine as an entity, Anonymous, is watching the revolution in your country unfold.
We are paying close attention to the brutal & barbaric police suppression with which these demonstrations are met, with ever growing concern and rising anger.
When politicians make decisions based on their own interests, divorced from the desires or will of the people they claim to represent, conflicts, is inevitable.
What we see unfolding in Ukraine is not simply a conflict over whether the nation should have closer links with the European Union or Russia, it is a struggle to hold a corrupt government accountable for shady back room deals and their flagrant disregard for the interests of the Ukrainian people.
When President Viktor Yanukovych caved in to pressure from Russia and abandoned the EU agreement a week before it was to be signed, he showed contempt for Ukrainian voters and a craven inability to stand up for himself, his government, or the democracy he claims to represent.
We see on the streets of Kiev and other cities a population angered by government deceit, exercising their democratic rights. The Ukrainian government has shown it's cowardice yet again by unleashing uncalled for violence against the protestors at the hands of the riot police, protecting the interests of the autocratic authorities.
The choice is obvious, when we see photos of unarmed Ukrainians, bloodied but defiant, facing off against an overwhelming force of well armed and trained officers.
Anonymous favors the underdog, the courageous that are willing to risk their life and limb for a cause that moves them to great action. This desire to take risks to enable change is one that Anonymous understands only too well.
Yanukovych has painted himself into a corner, he cannot risk angering President Vladimir Putin by backing out of his secret deal that was negotiated behind closed doors in November. However neither can he risk further inflaming the fury of his own people. It would appear to be a balancing act that is destined to see him topple. So what is to be done in the Ukraine now?
While the Ukrainian government refuses to heed the voice of the people it represents, Anonymous will lend it's own voice to theirs, amplifying it through every means at the disposal of the hive.
Yanukovych for treading on the aspirations of your people, for the violence unleashed on activists, journalists and protestors seeking change. We fully declare, the next statement, to be heard by, the police, the government and the corrupt politicians.
Operation Ukraine, Engaged.
We are anonymous.
We are legion.
We never forgive
We never forget
IRC: 6dvj6v5imhny3anf.onion/6697
Source: Anonymous News Network YouTube Channel
https://www.youtube.com/user/TheAnonNewsNet
**Related**
Anonymous Hackers Disrupt Ukrainian Government Websites During Kiev Protests
http://news.softpedia.com/news/Anonymous-Hackers-Disrupt-Ukrainian-Gover...
Anonymous leaks 1GB of data from Ukraine’s State Customs
http://anoninsiders.net/opukraine-1gb-data-leak-2134/
#OpUkraine https://twitter.com/search?q=%23OpUkraine
2013-12-16 Snowden: An Open Letter to the People of Brazil
Six months ago, I stepped out from the shadows of the United States Government's National Security Agency to stand in front of a journalist's camera.
I shared with the world evidence proving some governments are building a world-wide surveillance system to secretly track how we live, who we talk to, and what we say.
I went in front of that camera with open eyes, knowing that the decision would cost me family and my home, and would risk my life. I was motivated by a belief that the citizens of the world deserve to understand the system in which they live.
My greatest fear was that no one would listen to my warning. Never have I been so glad to have been so wrong. The reaction in certain countries has been particularly inspiring to me, and Brazil is certainly one of those.
At the NSA, I witnessed with growing alarm the surveillance of whole populations without any suspicion of wrongdoing, and it threatens to become the greatest human rights challenge of our time.
The NSA and other spying agencies tell us that for our own "safety" - for Dilma's "safety," for Petrobras' "safety" - they have revoked our right to privacy and broken into our lives. And they did it without asking the public in any country, even their own.
Today, if you carry a cell phone in Sao Paolo, the NSA can and does keep track of your location: they do this 5 billion times a day to people around the world.
When someone in Florianopolis visits a website, the NSA keeps a record of when it happened and what you did there. If a mother in Porto Alegre calls her son to wish him luck on his university exam, NSA can keep that call log for five years or more.
They even keep track of who is having an affair or looking at pornography, in case they need to damage their target's reputation.
American Senators tell us that Brazil should not worry, because this is not "surveillance," it's "data collection." They say it is done to keep you safe. They're wrong.
There is a huge difference between legal programs, legitimate spying, legitimate law enforcement - where individuals are targeted based on a reasonable, individualized suspicion - and these programs of dragnet mass surveillance that put entire populations under an all-seeing eye and save copies forever.
These programs were never about terrorism: they're about economic spying, social control, and diplomatic manipulation. They're about power.
Many Brazilian senators agree, and have asked for my assistance with their investigations of suspected crimes against Brazilian citizens.
I have expressed my willingness to assist wherever appropriate and lawful, but unfortunately the United States government has worked very hard to limit my ability to do so -- going so far as to force down the Presidential Plane of Evo Morales to prevent me from traveling to Latin America!
Until a country grants permanent political asylum, the US government will continue to interfere with my ability to speak.
Six months ago, I revealed that the NSA wanted to listen to the whole world. Now, the whole world is listening back, and speaking out, too. And the NSA doesn't like what it's hearing.
The culture of indiscriminate worldwide surveillance, exposed to public debates and real investigations on every continent, is collapsing.
Only three weeks ago, Brazil led the United Nations Human Rights Committee to recognize for the first time in history that privacy does not stop where the digital network starts, and that the mass surveillance of innocents is a violation of human rights.
The tide has turned, and we can finally see a future where we can enjoy security without sacrificing our privacy. Our rights cannot be limited by a secret organization, and American officials should never decide the freedoms of Brazilian citizens.
Even the defenders of mass surveillance, those who may not be persuaded that our surveillance technologies have dangerously outpaced democratic controls, now agree that in democracies, surveillance of the public must be debated by the public.
My act of conscience began with a statement:
I don't want to live in a world where everything that I say, everything I do, everyone I talk to, every expression of creativity or love or friendship is recorded.
That's not something I'm willing to support, it's not something I'm willing to build, and it's not something I'm willing to live under.
Days later, I was told my government had made me stateless and wanted to imprison me. The price for my speech was my passport, but I would pay it again: I will not be the one to ignore criminality for the sake of political comfort. I would rather be without a state than without a voice.
If Brazil hears only one thing from me, let it be this: when all of us band together against injustices and in defense of privacy and basic human rights, we can defend ourselves from even the most powerful systems.
2013-12-17 Snowden to Seek Asylum in Brazil
NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, currently living in Russia, has agreed to cooperate with Brazil in investigating the actions of the notorious US signals surveillance agency, and is asking political asylum from Brazil in return.
'Many Brazilian senators have asked my help with their investigations into suspected crimes against Brazilian citizens', said Snowden in an open letter to the people of Brazil. 'Until a country grants permanent asylum, the US government will continue to interfere with my ability to speak.'
Today, if you carry a cell phone in São Paulo, the NSA can track where you are, and does. When a person in Florianopolis visits a website, the NSA keeps a record of when it happened and what you did on that site. If a mother in Porto Alegre calls her son to wish him luck on an exam, the NSA can save the recording of the call for five years or longer.
Snowden regards the unlimited surveillance of the NSA 'the biggest human rights challenge of our times'.
The NSA and other allied intelligence agencies tell us that, for the sake of our own 'safety' - in the name of Dilma's 'safety', in the name of Petrobras' 'safety' - they revoked our right to privacy and invaded our lives. And they did not ask permission of the people from any country, not even their own.
Previous Offers of Asylum
Bolivia, Nicaragua, and Venezuela have already offered asylum to Snowden, but Snowden now says he'd prefer being in Brazil.
'Brazil is the ideal place because it is a politically strong country where the revelations had a real impact', says David Miranda.
Glenn Greenwald adds that it's only logical for the government of Dilma Rousseff to protect Snowden if they want his cooperation in their investigations into the NSA.
The Price to Pay
But there is a price to pay, and Snowden says he has understood this from the beginning.
The price of my speech was my passport, but I would pay again. I prefer to be stateless rather than lose my voice.
2013-12-25 Edward Snowden: Alternative Christmas Message
Hi, and Merry Christmas. I'm honored to have the chance to speak with you and your family this year.
Recently, we learned that our governments, working in concert, have created a system of worldwide mass surveillance, watching everything we do.
Great Britain's George Orwell warned us of the danger of this kind of information. The types of collection in the book -- microphones and video cameras, TVs that watch us -- are nothing compared to what we have available today. We have sensors in our pockets that track us everywhere we go.
Think about what this means for the privacy of the average person. A child born today will grow up with no conception of privacy at all. They'll never know what it means to have a private moment to themselves -- an unrecorded, unanalyzed thought. And that's a problem, because privacy matters. Privacy is what allows us to determine who we are and who we want to be.
The conversation occurring today will determine the amount of trust we can place both in the technology that surrounds us and the government that regulates it. Together, we can find a better balance. End mass surveillance. And remind the government that if it really wants to know how we feel, asking is always cheaper than spying.
For everyone out there listening, thank you, and Merry Christmas.