Tag Archives: Julian Assange

Breaking News, Security

British Court rejects the US’s request to extradite Julian Assange

A British court has rejected the request of the US government to extradite Wikileaks founder Julian Assange to the country.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange should not be extradited to the US to stand trial, the Westminster Magistrates’ Court has rejected the US government’s request to extradite him on charges related to illegally obtaining and sharing classified material about national security.

Assange faces multiple criminal charges under America’s Espionage Act and Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.

Judge Vanessa Baraitser denied the extradition due to suicide risk for the impression he could suffer in the U.S. prison.

“That extradition should be refused because it would be unjust and oppressive by reason of Mr. Assange’s mental condition and the high risk of suicide pursuant to section 91 of the EA 2003;” said District Judge (Magistrates’ Court) Vanessa Baraitser In the Westminster Magistrates’ Court.

“Taking account of all of the information available to him, he considered Mr Assange’s risk of suicide to be very high should extradition become imminent. This was a well-informed opinion carefully supported by evidence and explained over two detailed reports.”

Of course, the U.S. government will likely appeal the decision.

Wikileaks founder is currently facing extradition to the United States for his role in one of the largest compromises of classified information in the history of the United States. He published thousands of classified diplomatic and military documents on WikiLeaks in 2010.

For the first time, US DoJ charges an individual under the 102-year-old Act that persecutes the disclosure of national defense information that could be used against the United States.

According to the DoJ, the WikiLeaks founder conspired and tried to recruit Anonymous and LulzSec hacker to steal confidential and secret data on his behalf. In 2010, Assange gained unauthorized access to a government computer system of a NATO country and years later he contacted s LulzSec leader who was working for the FBI and provided him a list of targets.

The US authorities also accuse Assange of having conspired with Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning to crack a password hash for an Army computer to access classified documents that were later published on the WikiLeaks website.

In April 2019, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been arrested at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London after Ecuador withdrew asylum after seven years.

In 2012 a British judge ruled WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange should be extradited to Sweden to face allegations of sexual assault there, but Assange received political asylum from Ecuador and spent the last years in its London embassy.

In May 2019, the WikiLeaks founder has been sentenced to 50 weeks in prison for breaching his bail conditions in 2012 and finding asylum into Ecuador’s London embassy for more than seven years.

A few weeks later, the United States Department of Justice charged Assange with 18 counts on the alleged violation of the Espionage Act.

 Let’s close with the comment of the NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden:

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Pierluigi Paganini

(SecurityAffairs – hacking, Julian Assange)

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Breaking News, Security

Julian Assange sentenced to 50 weeks in jail

Julian Assange has been sentenced to 11 months in prison for breaching his bail conditions in 2012 and finding asylum into
Ecuadorian embassy for more than seven years.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been sentenced to 50 weeks in prison for breaching his bail conditions in 2012 and finding asylum into Ecuador’s London embassy for more than seven years.

On April 2019, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been arrested at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London. after Ecuador withdrew asylum after seven years.

Seven years ago, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange took refuge in the embassy to avoid extradition to Sweden over a sexual assault case.

In 2012 a British judge ruled WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange should be extradited to Sweden to face allegations of sexual assault there, but Assange received political asylum from Ecuador and spent the last years in its London embassy.

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange is arrested at the Ecuadorian embassy in London

Immediately after his arrest, Assange was convicted at Westminster Magistrates’ Court of jumping the bail in June 2012 after the extradition order to Sweden.

In 2017, Sweden dropped the preliminary investigation into the rape accusation against Julian Assange, but Wikileaks founder remained into the Ecuadorian Embassy fearing of extradition to the United States.
Judge Deborah Taylor said that Assange’s conduct had cost 16 million pounds of British taxpayers money.

“Your continued residency has cost £16m of taxpayers’ money. No one is above the reach of the law.” said Judge Deborah Taylor while delivering sentence at Southwark

“It’s difficult to envisage a more serious example of this offence.”

“I have taken into account all that has been said on your behalf in mitigation, including the background history of this case which has been set out in some detail,” said HHJ Taylor as she summed up the case against Assange.”

“Whilst you may have had fears as to what may happen to you, nonetheless you had a choice, and the course of action you chose was to commit this offence in the manner and with the features I have already outlined. In addition, I reject the suggestion that your voluntary residence in the Embassy should reduce any sentence. You were not living under prison conditions, and you could have left at any time to face due process with the rights and protections which the legal system in this country provides.”

The lawyer read an Assange’s letter in the court, he is disappointed for “terrifying circumstances:”

“I apologize unreservedly to those who consider that I have disrespected them by the way I have pursued my case. This is not what I wanted or intended,” Assange added.

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Pierluigi Paganini

(SecurityAffairs – Julian Assange)

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Breaking News, Digital ID, Security

Arjen Kamphuis, the Dutch associate of Julian Assange, went missing in Norway

Julian Assange associate and author of “Information Security for Journalists” has disappeared, the Norwegian police is working on the case.

Media agencies worldwide are reporting the strange disappearance of Arjen Kamphuis, the Julian Assange associate. The news was confirmed by WikiLeaks on Sunday, the man has been missing since August 20, when he left his hotel in the Norwegian town of Bodo.

According to WikiLeaks, Kamphuis had bought a ticket for a flight departing on August 22 from Trondheim that is far from Bodo.

His friends believe he disappeared either in Bodo, Trondheim or on the way to the destination.

“A website set up to gather information on the missing person says: “He is 47 years old, 1.78 meters tall and has a normal posture. He was usually dressed in black and carrying his black backpack. He is an avid hiker.”” reported the German website dw.com.

At the time of writing, there have been two unconfirmed sightings, one in Alesund, Norway, and the other in Ribe, Denmark.

The Norwegian authorities have started an investigation on the case on Sunday.

“We have started an investigation,” police spokesman Tommy Bech told the news agency AFP. At the time, the police “would not speculate about what may have happened to him,”.

According to the Norwegian Verdens Gang tabloid newspaper, the Norwegian authorities cannot access location data collected by the Kamphuis’s mobile phone until he is officially reported missing in the Netherlands.

Stay tuned …

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Pierluigi Paganini

(Security Affairs – Kamphuis, wikileaks)

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Breaking News, Hacking, Hacktivism, Intelligence

Operation Hotel – Ecuador spent millions on spy operation for Julian Assange

According to The Guardian newspaper, Ecuador spent millions on spy operation for Julian Assange after he hacked the embassy network.

According to a report published by the Guardian, Ecuador spied on WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange at its London embassy where he took in political asylum since 2012,

In 2012 a British judge ruled he should be extradited to Sweden to face allegations of sexual assault there, but Assange explained that they were political accusations.

“Ecuador bankrolled a multimillion-dollar spy operation to protect and support Julian Assange in its central London embassy, employing an international security company and undercover agents to monitor his visitors, embassy staff and even the British police, according to documents seen by the Guardian.” reads the report published by The Guardian.

“Over more than five years, Ecuador put at least $5m (£3.7m) into a secret intelligence budget that protected the WikiLeaks founder while he had visits from Nigel Farage, members of European nationalist groups and individuals linked to the Kremlin.”

The newspaper revealed Equador spent $5.0 million on the operation codenamed “Operation Guest” and later “Operation Hotel” that was approved by the then Ecuadorian president, Rafael Correa, and the then foreign minister, Ricardo Patiño.

Initially, the operation aimed at the Assange’s protection, but later became a spying operation on the journalist. From June 2012 to the end of August 2013, Operation Hotel cost Ecuador $972,889, according to documents belonging to the Senain, the Ecuadorian intelligence agency.

The experts hired by Equador monitored Assange’s daily activities and any contact with external staff and visitors, the stayed in a rented flat near the embassy at a cost of £2,800 a month.

“Documents show the intelligence programme, called “Operation Guest”, which later became known as “Operation Hotel” – coupled with parallel covert actions – ran up an average cost of at least $66,000 a month for security, intelligence gathering and counter-intelligence to “protect” one of the world’s most high-profile fugitives.” continues the newspaper. the paper said.

According to The Guardian, that cited documents it has vieved, Assange hacked the communications system within the embassy gaining access to staff communications.

“In an extraordinary breach of diplomatic protocol, Assange managed to compromise the communications system within the embassy and had his own satellite internet access, according to documents and a source who wished to remain anonymous.” continues the paper

“By penetrating the embassy’s firewall, Assange was able to access and intercept the official and personal communications of staff,”

Wikileaks denied Assange had hacked the embassy network.

In response, Ecuador has forbidden internet access for Assange in recent months with the installation of a jammer, the Government as also restricted the number of visitors he can receive.

“Assange claims the accusations were politically motivated and could lead to him being extradited to the United States to face imprisonment over WikiLeaks’ publication of secret US military documents and diplomatic cables in 2010.” reported the AFP agency.

“Ecuador in December made Assange an Ecuadoran citizen and unsuccessfully tried to register him as a diplomat with immunity as part of its efforts to have him leave the embassy without risk of being detained.”

Last year, Sweden dropped its investigation on Assange, but the British authorities still plan to arrest him for breaching his bail conditions.

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Pierluigi Paganini

(Security Affairs – Julian Assange, hacking)

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