INTERNATIONAL POLICE FORCE Interpol has arrested 25 individuals in four counties on charges related to Anonymous hacktivism.
So far Interpol is just saying that the alleged hackers are believed to be linked to Anonymous, however they were arrested in an operation called "Unmask", which can only be a reference to the V for Vendetta Guy Fawkes masks that represent the hactivist group. The operation has been running for two weeks according to Interpol and follows cyber attacks in Colombia and Chile. Interpol said that attacks originated from Argentina, Chile, Colombia and Spain and hit web sites belonging to the Colombian Ministry of Defence and president's office, as well as Chile's Endesa electricity company and its National Library.
The suspected hackers are aged between 17 and 40, and the police seized a variety of hardware including mobile phones and computers from their residences. "This operation shows that crime in the virtual world does have real consequences for those involved, and that the Internet cannot be seen as a safe haven for criminal activity, no matter where it originates or where it is targeted," said Bernd Rossbach, acting Interpol executive director of police services. Anonymous has reacted as you might expect, and at the time of writing Interpol's web site is unavailable. Tweets from the group's many accounts are responding to the hack with varying degrees of glee.
AnonymousIRC Posted the following on twitter:
And interpol.int is #TangoDown again. This time we're pretty sure it's no coincidence. They poked the hive. #anonymous
SOURCE: The Inquirer
So far Interpol is just saying that the alleged hackers are believed to be linked to Anonymous, however they were arrested in an operation called "Unmask", which can only be a reference to the V for Vendetta Guy Fawkes masks that represent the hactivist group. The operation has been running for two weeks according to Interpol and follows cyber attacks in Colombia and Chile. Interpol said that attacks originated from Argentina, Chile, Colombia and Spain and hit web sites belonging to the Colombian Ministry of Defence and president's office, as well as Chile's Endesa electricity company and its National Library.
The suspected hackers are aged between 17 and 40, and the police seized a variety of hardware including mobile phones and computers from their residences. "This operation shows that crime in the virtual world does have real consequences for those involved, and that the Internet cannot be seen as a safe haven for criminal activity, no matter where it originates or where it is targeted," said Bernd Rossbach, acting Interpol executive director of police services. Anonymous has reacted as you might expect, and at the time of writing Interpol's web site is unavailable. Tweets from the group's many accounts are responding to the hack with varying degrees of glee.
AnonymousIRC Posted the following on twitter:
And interpol.int is #TangoDown again. This time we're pretty sure it's no coincidence. They poked the hive. #anonymous
SOURCE: The Inquirer
