Anonymous Hacktivists Target Minneapolis Police Department In Wake Of Protests

By John Vibes / Truth Theory

The “hacktivist” group Anonymous that began making headlines around the time of the Arab Spring and Occupy Wall Street protests roughly a decade ago has re-emerged in recent weeks as unrest spreads across the United States. Anonymous never really went away, and pockets of the decentralized network have been active over the past few years with various operations, but they have not seen this kind of media attention since the early days of the movement.

Anonymous has used a variety of different social media pages to connect with followers, share news, and discuss operations. Last week, an Anonymous News Facebook page with 11 Million followers published a video with a message to the Minneapolis Police department. The video featured a figure in the iconic Guy Fawkes mask with an electronically concealed voice, reading a statement about the Minneapolis Police Department and their “many crimes.”

https://www.facebook.com/anonews.co/videos/285581555919237/

Within days after the statement was published, the Minneapolis police department website was temporarily taken offline in a suspected Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack. Next, a database of email addresses and passwords claiming to be hacked from the police department’s system leaked online. However, some researchers dispute that this was the result of a hack, and say that it appears to be a collection of older information that may have already been publicly available.

Anonymous seems to appear in instances of government overreach and corruption, and the group has gotten involved with similar issues in the past. During the 2014 protests in Ferguson, Missouri, Anonymous threatened to target the city if protesters were harmed, and then temporarily disabled the city’s website.

The Anonymous News Facebook page that published the initial message does not appear to have any connection any potential hacks, but was merely publishing a press release based on information that was already being discussed online by members of the group.

As you might know, tech giants like Facebook, Twitter, and Google (Also Youtube), increasingly censor information that does not fit the mainstream narrative. Freedom of speech should be the basic human right, however, in the current era, you are not allowed to share your views anymore. Fortunately, alternative platforms appear that are censorship-free. Minds.com is one of these platforms. You can sign up for free, HERE, and make sure you follow Truth Theory on Minds.

Image Credit:  tiero