Cross Posted at Legal Schnauzer
A federal grand jury in California is considering evidence against a group of activist hackers that supports the efforts of WikiLeaks to expose official wrongdoing by release of secret documents.
Anonymous Operation Want (AOW) was the target of a multi-state FBI raid on January 27, reports Bloomberg. The group has responded with a video that spotlights the role of GOP political strategist Karl Rove and the wealthy Wallenberg family of Sweden as key players in an effort to prosecute WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on sex-related charges in Europe.
The FBI reportedly is investigating AOW attacks on the Web sites of four companies that had blocked contributions to WikiLeaks. Reports Bloomberg:
Among the evidence seized by the FBI during multistate raids on Jan. 27 was data taken from an individual who controls one of Anonymous's primary servers, identified by the organization only by his cyber-handle "Owen,' Brown said.
"The FBI is breaking down people's doors with guns drawn," said Mara Verheyden-Hilliard, a member of the board of the National Lawyers Guild, which has talked with Anonymous organizers about their legal defense. "A group of people are engaged in a modern day electronic sit-in, and the FBI wants to treat that like it's terrorist activity."
AOW has a tendency to retaliate against those who try to shut it down. In fact, the group uses a mask-wearing character from the film V for Vendetta in its literature and videos:
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