Hackers protest BART decision to block cellphones

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — San Francisco's mass transit system prepared for renewed protests Monday, a day after hackers angry over blocked cell phone service at some transit stations broke into a website and posted company contact information for more than 2,000 customers.

 

The action by a hacker group known as Anonymous was the latest showdown between anarchists angry at perceived attempts to limit free speech and officials trying to control protests that grow out of social networking and have the potential to become violent.

Anonymous posted people's names, phone numbers, and street and email addresses on its own website, while also calling for a disruption of the Bay Area Rapid Transit's evening commute Monday.

BART officials said Sunday that they were working a strategy to try to block any efforts by protesters to try to disrupt the service.

"We have been planning for the protests that are said to be shaping up for tomorrow," BART spokesman Jim Allison said. He did not provide specifics, but said BART police will be staffing stations and trains and that the agency had already contacted San Francisco police.

 

 

 

The transit agency disabled the effected website, myBART.org, Sunday night after it also had been altered by apparent hackers who posted images of the so-called Guy Fawkes masks that anarchists have previously worn when showing up to physical protests.

The cyber attack came in response to the BART's decision to block wireless service in several of its San Francisco stations Thursday night as the agency aimed to thwart a planned protest over a transit police shooting. Officials said the protest had been designed to disrupt the evening commute.

"We are Anonymous, we are your citizens, we are the people, we do not tolerate oppression from any government agency," the hackers wrote on their own website. "BART has proved multiple times that they have no problem exploiting and abusing the people."

Allison described myBART.org as a "satellite site" used for marketing purposes. It's operated by an outside company and sends BART alerts and other information to customers, Allison said.

The names and contact info published by Sunday came from a database of 55,000 subscribers, he said. He did not know if the group had obtained information from all the subscribers, he said, adding that no bank account or credit card information was listed.

The BART computer problem was the latest hack the loosely organized group claimed credit for this year. Last month, the FBI and British and Dutch officials made 21 arrests, many of them related to the group's attacks on Internet payment provider PayPal Inc., which has been targeted over its refusal to process donations to WikiLeaks. The group also claims credit for disrupting the websites of Visa and MasterCard in December when the credit card companies stopped processing donations to WikiLeaks and its founder, Julian Assange.

BART's decision to shut down wireless access was criticized by many as heavy handed, and some raised questions about whether the move violated free speech.

The problems began Thursday night when BART officials blocked wireless access to disrupt organization of a demonstration protesting the July 3 shooting death by BART police who said the 45-year-old victim was wielding a knife.

Activists also remain upset by the 2009 death of Oscar Grant, an unarmed black passenger who was shot by a white officer on an Oakland train platform. The officer quit the force and was convicted of involuntary manslaughter after the shooting.

Facing backlash from civil rights advocates and one of its own board members, BART has defended the decision to block cell phone use, with Allison saying the cell phone disruptions were legal because the agency owns the property and infrastructure.

"I'm just shocked that they didn't think about the implications of this. We really don't have the right to be this type of censor," Lynette Sweet, who serves on BART's board of directors, said previously. "In my opinion, we've let the actions of a few people affect everybody. And that's not fair."

Laura Eichman was among those whose email and home phone number were published by the hackers Sunday.

"I think what they (the hackers) did was illegal and wrong. I work in IT myself, and I think that this was not ethical hacking. I think this was completely unjustified," Eichman said.

She said she doesn't blame BART and feels its action earlier in the week of blocking cell phone service was reasonable.

"It doesn't necessarily keep me from taking BART in the future but I will certainly have to review where I set up accounts and what kind of data I'm going to keep online," Eichman said.

Michael Beekman of San Francisco told the AP that he didn't approve of BART's move to cut cell phone service or the Anonymous posting.

"I'm not paranoid but i feel like it was an invasion of privacy," he said. "I thought I would never personally be involved in any of their (Anonymous') shenanigans."

The group Anonymous, according to its website, does "not tolerate oppression from any government agency," and it said it was releasing the User Info Database of MyBart.gov as one of many actions to come.

"We apologize to any citizen that has his information published, but you should go to BART and ask them why your information wasn't secure with them," the statement said.

___

 

This screen shot taken from myBART.org shows a page from the website after it was hacked by the hacker's group Anonymous on Sunday, Aug. 14, 2011. Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) district officials said they were attempting Sunday to shut down the hacker's group website that lists the names of thousands of San Francisco Bay area residents who are email subscribers of a legitimate BART website. (AP Photo/myBART.org)

Views: 135

Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Gotta love the hypocrisy!! Egypt tries to shut down cell and internet access to suppress the demonstrations and who's first in line to condemn those actions, th US.

BART pulls basically the same stunt and not a peep from the government. Albeit, Mubaraks track record of human rights was nothing to brag about(all done with US support), but BARTs track record isn't as shiny as the BART officres badges. 2 situations, different in size, but same in principle.

RSS

"Destroying the New World Order"

TOP CONTENT THIS WEEK

THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING THE SITE!

mobile page

12160.info/m

12160 Administrators

 

Latest Activity

Sandy posted a photo
2 hours ago
Less Prone posted a video

President Trump addresses U.N. General Assembly - FULL SPEECH

President Donald Trump speaks at the United Nations General Assembly in New York City.Full video here: https://www.c-span.org/event/white-house-event/preside...
3 hours ago
Burbia posted a video

2 MIN AGO: Western Provinces MAJOR New WEXIT Announcement - Canada EXPLODES!

In a stunning turn of events, Western provinces just made a major new WEXIT announcement — and it’s shaking the foundations of Canadian unity. Is Western sep...
11 hours ago
Doc Vega posted a blog post

How You Provoke a Civil War

In the world of counter intelligence which is simply one aspect of many pertaining to asymmetrical…See More
yesterday
Burbia commented on Burbia's video
Thumbnail

CHARLIE KIRK WAS CNP! JOSH REEVES 9-11-25

"I don't follow as much with Josh Reeves than I use to. He seems to be a documentary producing…"
Friday
Burbia posted a video

CHARLIE KIRK WAS CNP! JOSH REEVES 9-11-25

DONATE-paypal-dayglow76@yahoo.comCashapp-reevesradioVenmo-Josh-Reeves-61FILMS AND AUDIOBOOKS DOWNLOAD STORE-https://store.payloadz.com/results/242828-josh-re...
Friday
Doc Vega posted blog posts
Thursday
tjdavis posted a video

CHARLIE KIRK VIDEO THAT KEEPS GETTING REMOVED OFF OF SEVERAL PLATFORMS

I had not planned to share this publicly, but I believe Advar, who spoke with Charlie Kirk while I was very ill, would have wanted me to. After my interview ...
Thursday
pohonemas33 team commented on Chris of the family Masters's photo
Thumbnail

Gold-Coast-Message

"untuk bermain slot, kamu cukup kunjungi situs kacang99 pasti langsung gacor"
Wednesday
Doc Vega posted blog posts
Wednesday
Burbia posted a blog post

Former President Trump?

When was this article written? It is attributed to Victor Davis Hanson. He is a Fellow at Hoover…See More
Tuesday
Doc Vega posted a blog post

Don’t Go Hunting For Bigfoot

It is October 19, 2019 at 5:46 AM. This will be the last time any visual evidence of Mark is seen…See More
Monday
tjdavis posted a video

Most Corrupt Series: Elizabeth Warren | Forgotten History

Elizabeth Warren has built her reputation as a "reformer", but her political career has also drawn sharp criticism. Questions have been raised about her fina...
Sep 19
Doc Vega commented on Doc Vega's blog post Ashrams and Moonies Perfect Case for Mind Control
"less prone, Thanks for your support Buddy! "
Sep 18
Doc Vega posted a photo

main-thumb-ti-6724328-100-cnsgqkrgkrhyeyyerazynmuwoplecnbx

When will they put Trump on Mt. Rushmore?
Sep 18
Doc Vega's 4 blog posts were featured
Sep 18
Burbia's blog post was featured

Charlie Kirk Assassination

September 10th 2025 in Utah Turning Point USA CEO has been assassinated. Coincidentally,  answering…See More
Sep 18
Charles Magus's blog post was featured

FURTHER PROOF OF WALK-INS! Prisoners of the Dulce Base by Sherry Shriner

There is a real connection between the Cabal and what is happening at this Undergroung…See More
Sep 18
Less Prone favorited Doc Vega's blog post Ashrams and Moonies Perfect Case for Mind Control
Sep 18
Less Prone commented on tjdavis's blog post Sentient World Simulation
"Cannot open the link"
Sep 18

© 2025   Created by truth.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service

content and site copyright 12160.info 2007-2019 - all rights reserved. unless otherwise noted