While massive hacks in the U.S., stupid remarks by our presidential candidates, and Greece and China’s economies grab the headlines, there are those trying to sound alarms in Canada about hacks/attacks by members of Anonymous. So far, though, their warnings seem to be falling on either incredibly calm or incredibly clueless ears.
Attacks by Anonymous in Canada escalated following the fatal shooting on July 16 by RCMP officers of 48 year-old James McIntyre of Dawson Creek. McIntyre, known as @JayMack9 on Twitter, was wearing a Guy Fawkes mask and was attending a hearing on a controversial Site C hydroelectric dam.
Early reports had indicated that the RCMP shooting may have been linked to reports of a man who was knocking over display boards at the protest hearing, but those statements were later walked back by investigators. The Alaska Highway News reports:
Investigators originally said the victim was “believed to be connected” to a man who knocked over tables and display boards at the event. However, 24-hours later, the Independent Investigations Office revealed that man had never come into contact with police and was alive and well. Spokesperson Kellie Kilpatrick attributed the mixup to the large number of “moving parts” involved in the investigation.
According to at least one witness, McIntyre may have been shot because he was holding a knife and refused to release it. Other sources say McIntyre was holding a pocket knife but he was only holding it because he was removing it from his belt at the order of the RCMP.
Anonymous issued a press release on July 18.
A YouTube video posted on July 19 also warns that there will be revenge:
Greetings citizens of the world. We are Anonymous.
Just a few short days ago on July 16th 2015, our brother was murdered by RCMP.
He was protesting a BC Hydro Electric dam project in Dawson’s Creek, British Columbia.
When Bill C51 was passed into law, we expected swift and brutal enactment. However, we never expected to so quickly be mourning a death in the family.
We have Identified our fallen but until next of kin have been notified, we will not release his name.
It is a sad day for us all. He is the second Anon to be killed fighting for a cause he believed in, as we all believe in a sacrifice upon the alter of freedom to be looked upon in the deepest of respects.
For many of us, sadness has turned to rage and we will not allow this death to go unmarked.
To the RCMP:it’s far too late to expect us. You will feel the collective wrath of Anonymous like never before…
We demand the name and dismissal of the officer who murdered our brother and until then, we will not rest.
You cannot kill an idea.
Comrades;
Join us on irc.anonops.com/6697
Channel AnonLegion
The message includes the standard Anonymous sign-off, but with an additional warning:
We are Anonymous
We are Legion
United as One
Divided by Zero
We will never forgive this…
We will never forget our fallen…
Expect all of us
How will the RCMP possibly justify shooting and killing McIntyre? How is this not an over-reaction by armed police? Like his friends and family, this blogger awaits the results of the investigation and hopes that it’s not a whitewash of events to justify the killing of a man who engaging in nonviolent political protest.
In the meantime, the attacks on RCMP’s web site are undoubtedly only the beginning, and government agencies should be on very high alert for online attacks. While there’s never been any indication that Anonymous is at the level of hackers like Chinese or Russian state actors, the killing of one of their own will never go unavenged.