About three weeks ago, a team of teenage hackers managed to hack into the personal AOL email account of CIA Director John Brennan. In the process, they were not only able to access Brennan’s personal correspondence, but also sensitive security information regarding top-secret Intelligence matters.
Now comes word via Wired that the same team of hackers has struck again, this time infiltrating a highly sensitive online portal used by law enforcement agencies to enter and share information pertaining to arrest records, live shootings, and terrorist attacks.
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The system in question is called JABS (Joint Automated Booking System) and in addition to providing a shared database among law enforcement officials, also enables various agencies to chat about pending matters in real-time.
“This latest breach, if legitimate, is significant because it gives the hackers access to arrest records directly after they have been entered into the system,” Wired reports. This would be valuable information for gossip sites and other media outlets interested in breaking stories about the arrest of celebrities and politicians.
“More importantly,” the report adds, “the system can also include information about arrests that are under court seal and may not be made public for months or years—such as the arrest of suspected terrorists, gang members and drug suspects. Knowledge about these arrests can tip-off other members of a terrorist cell or gang to help them avoid capture.”
As for how the hackers managed to access JABS, they haven’t yet revealed their methods. Regarding their motivation, one member of the group, a fellow who goes by the name of Cracka, said that they’re primarily trying to hurt the government, not “innocent people.” Cracka also said that he’s not in it for fame and wants people to know that he’s “doing this for palestine.”
That said, the hackers yesterday posted online the names, phone numbers, and email addresses of upwards of 3,000 government employees from the FBI and various local police departments. And in an indication that there is more to come, the hackers categorized the posting as “Part 1” of what appears to be a more elaborate plan.
Make sure to hit the source link below for Wired’s full rundown of all the law enforcement tools the hackers managed to access. It’s an interesting peek at the varied number of tools law enforcement agencies use on a day-to-day basis to keep tabs on the criminal underworld.
