LulzSec says it is to disband

Hacking organisation announces move on Twitter after attacks on entertainment company and law enforcement agency sites

The LulzSec hacking group, which has sabotaged a trail of websites over the last two months including attacks on law enforcement agencies and the release of private data, has said it is dissolving itself.

The group made the announcement through its Twitter account on Saturday. It gave no reason for the disbandment, which analysts say could be a sign of nerves in the face of law enforcement investigations.

Rival hackers have also released information they say could point to the identities of the six-member group.

LulzSec claimed hacks on major entertainment companies, FBI partner organisations, the CIA, the US senate and a pornography website.

Kevin Mitnick, a security consultant and former hacker, said the group had probably concluded that the more it kept up its activities, the greater the chance was that a member would make a mistake enabling the authorities to catch them.

LulzSec has inspired copycat groups around the world, he said, meaning similar attacks are likely to continue. "They can sit back and watch the mayhem and not risk being captured," he added.

As a parting shot, LulzSec released documents and login information apparently gleaned from gaming websites and corporate servers.

The largest group of documents 338 files appears to be internal documents from AT&T, detailing its building of a new wireless broadband network in the US. The network is set to go live this summer. A spokesman for the phone company could not immediately confirm the authenticity of the documents.

On Friday, a LulzSec member told AP the group was sitting on at least five gigabytes of government and law enforcement data from across the world, which it planned to release in the next three weeks. Saturday's release was less than one-tenth of that size.

In an unusual strategy for a hacker group, LulzSec has sought publici! ty and c onducted a conversation with the public through its Twitter account.

Observers believe it is an offshoot of Anonymous, a larger, more loosely-organised group that attempts to mobilise hackers for attacks on targets it considers immoral, such as oppressive Middle Eastern governments and opponents of WikiLeaks.

LulzSec, in contrast, attacked anyone it could for "the lulz" internet jargon for laughs.


guardian.co.uk Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

'Son of star wars' base in Yorkshire finally ready to open

Peace campaigners slam secrecy over $10bn Menwith Hill project that puts UK in line of fire A "star wars" inspired defence shield that will alert the US to the launch of ballistic missiles is expected to be operational from a North Yorkshire airbase before the end of the year. The Space Based Infrared System is seen as the successor to Ronald Reagan's unrealised "star wars" programme, which would have detected Soviet missiles and shot them down using lasers. The new system, which has cost more than $10bn, has taken almost two decades to build and has been subject to numerous delays and cost overruns. The imminent completion of the project at the RAF Menwith Hill base near Harrogate has revived fears that space is in danger of becoming militarised, with Britain in the vanguard. "I find this disturbing to say the least," said a local Labour MP, Fabian Hamilton. "It's as if they are saying this is a place in the US and you are foreigners. But ha
Keep reading

Wisconsin governor prank called

Republican is duped by a caller pretending to be one of the rightwing Koch brothers, two of his wealthiest backers The Republican governor at the centre of the union-busting protests in the US has been embarrassed by a prank call that he believed was from one of his billionaire backers. On the recording of the call, which has been released online, the Republican governor of Wisconsin Scott Walker tells a caller impersonating one of the rightwing Koch brothers that he is looking forward to flying to California to celebrate with them once the battle with the unions was won, and jokes about taking a baseball bat to slug Democratic leaders. Walker is under siege in his office in the state capitol building in Madison, Wisconsin, in a backlash against his proposed legislation to remove unions' right to collective bargaining and cut public sector workers' pay. Ian Murphy, who calls in pretending to be David Koch, suggests planting troublemakers among the protesters, who have been peac
Keep reading

As China Rolls Ahead, Fear Follows

Image
As China Rolls Ahead, Fear Follows - China kept economy growing in past couple of years by printing money. Now it's feeling consequences. Inflation in consumer prices, speculative bubble in property. Milk dearer in Shanghai than in New York Agence France-Presse — Getty Images China is looking to restructure its economy away from dependence on exports like textiles. For nearly two years, China’s turbocharged economy has raced ahead with the aid of a huge government stimulus program and aggressive lending by state-run banks. But a growing number of economists now worry that China — the world’s fastest growing economy and a pillar of strength during the global financial crisis — could be stalled next year by soaring inflation, mounting government debt and asset bubbles. Two credit ratings agencies, Moody’s and Fitch Ratings , say China is still poised for growth, yet they have also recently warned about hidden risks in its banking system. Fitch even hinted at the
Keep reading