FBI's Anonymous Probe

United Kingdom and the FBI's Wikileaks "Anonymous" probe unleashes 40 search warrants, 5 arrests and many unknown names. The non-profit Wikileaks releases classified and detailed material by anonymous and news link sources.

Here's how it works according to the FBI press release - in reverse. Score a free Anonymous download then crash a major U.S. company. Yes, it's legal for a city to be high in traffic. No, it's not legal to intentionally park your vehicle in the middle of an intersection. DDoS, distributed denial-of-service, has been a classic in-your-face-wazzup technique ever since the dawn of electronic psycho-venge.

United Kingdom's Metropolitan Police Service provided additional arrest warrants with 5 arrests taking a bite out of international crime. The FBI's take is to take the Anonymous down.

It's not if a cyber attack will happen - but when. Remember, it's only cyberwarfare when one country electronicly disrupts another. However, nothing is feared more than an attack on U.S. utilities, Nuclear Plants and electric grid. Not even a gang of cyber hooligans stretching out their legal wings circling the enemy's website would deem important.

There is no word on evidence or further details against the latest alleged Anonymous ring. But then again, never give a wolf advice on how to sabotage the pigs. Not every viewer is going support what some may call the underdog.

You have to see it from their point of view. Let's count the ways.

After enjoying some web surfing you check on your site but can't access it. Turns out, interfered communication, otherwise code reset, will continue to lead you towards page not found or unavailable. It could be temporary or indefinitely. Way number one.

A computer can fall victim to a SYN flood, ping flood, Teardrop attack, peer-to-peer attack and smurf attack to name a few. Ways number two, three, four, five, and six. For some website owners hardship comes everyday in the replacing and repairing of damaged hardware involved in cyber attacks. To them the group Anonymous should remain anonymous.

"Anonymous", according to the FBI report, claimed responsibility for crashing Mastercard.com. Don't worry, Visa and PayPal weren't totally left out. CNN reports Visa and PayPal were "strained."

The Anonymous free download and "Operation Payback" banner would make it difficult to fly below the FBI radar.

The U.S. and U.K. are not the only locations against potential cyber attacks. With France, Netherlands, Germany, the National Cyber Forensics and Training Alliance (NCFTA) at the foot of the bed, America and United Kingdom about to climb in from both sides of the bed - Anonymous is about to get globally probed.

But why cyber attack Mastercard.com? Mastercard was one of the payment services that Wikileaks used in donations. That was until Mastercard cut Wikileaks off. Payback thickens.

Who are the anonymous sources of Wikileaks? Could they actually be Anonymous, the cyber gang?

One has to remember that some of the Wikileaks files comes from highly skilled professionals. Meaning, attracting the attention of the U.S. military was only a matter of time. It wasn't long ago when the U.S. government pushed for hackers to join forces with them in the name of cybersecurity. Anonymous just may give the U.S. cyber team the enforcement test run they've been preparing for.

Much like a 007 cyber action movie Anonymous has slowly been described as the underdog with virtual Fight Club appeal. But we must take note of the FBI press release when stating how serious they take cyber attacks. .

The report does not release any names of those in question, any Anonymous movement or the groups next possible target. The individuals involved continue to remain, what's the best word - Anonymous.

Source(s): Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); CNN.com / Jan. 28, 2011

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