Anon Hacking and the KKK

Recently, rumors in the media indicated that the hacker group Anonymous was preparing to release the names of 1,000 "secret" KKK members.

Over the weekend of November 1st, people in the Southern heritage community received via the Internet a link that took them to a document comprising a list of people's names followed by varying information about each person. The document was hosted on an anonymous text storage site accessible by anyone who has the URL.

The list comprises 35 entries for 36 people, as one entry listed two individuals. The closest thing to a title for the document is: kkk  Presumably, this list is supposed to comprise the first 36 of those thousand people, although it is highly questionable whether the group listing the KKK information is actually Anonymuous.

First,  the information appears to be only that which can be easily gathered online, without hacking. The real Anonymous would have posted private emails, passwords and other protected online information -- the sort of information that cannot be accessed anonymously without hacking.  As noted, none of the information on the list is hacked; it is all readily available online to anyone who takes the time to get it.

If this is the work of the real Anonymous, they are plummeting in hacking expertise. Some of the information is ludicrous as "proof" of kkk affiliation or anything else. The type of automobile the individual owns, the VIN, IP addresses indicate kkk affiliation? These items aren't even proof of identity. Moreover, the information also included blatantly misspelled names -- the correct spelling of which is readily available online -- and other inaccurate data. The information is not uniform but varies by individual, and is not presented in a coherently formatted manner. In short, this is the work of amateur sleuths presenting what they could find -- not what they hacked.

A few other things to note about this list.

--Only four names on the list are identified with the KKK in any way.

--A number are associated with what has been identified as white supremacy groups, although some have been defunct for years, something the real Anonymous would know.

--At least one name is not showing an affiliation with any group whatever, or to a blog, or any sort of connection to anything -- which is either very sloppy "hacking" -- or a blatant example of deliberate deception.

--The rest of the names on the list are of people who are in various Confederate heritage and history groups which are not white supremacist groups, or individuals who publish personal writings in support of Confederate heritage.

For several years, and especially in the past few months, there has been a concerted effort by some individuals affiliated with the radical political left and with academia to use the mendacious "links and ties" method of guilt-by-association to attribute hatred and violence to Confederate heritage supporters by implying affiliation with racist groups. Many heritage supporters believe this fake "Anonymous" development is just the latest attack in that effort.

It is further noted that the non-hacked information-gathering of the "kkk" document is the exact type of info-gathering exhibited by several anti-Confederate bloggers in an ongoing effort to lie about, harass and persecute the Confederate heritage community.

There is also concern that the people behind this fake Anonymous attack on Confederate heritage wish to bring violence and physical harm to heritage supporters. This has prompted several individuals targeted on the "kkk" list to notify the Federal Bureau of Investigation and appropriate law enforcement agencies in their areas.

The inclusion of Confederate heritage supporters in a "kkk" listing -- even a fake one by a fake hacker group -- is a baldface lie that starkly illustrates the moral bankruptcy of people who put out the list, and the dupes who believe it.