WAKE UP WORLD

MI5 called in to find organisers of riots

Vikram Dodd, Josh Halliday, Richard Norton-Taylor

August 17, 2011

Ads by Google

BP's Work in the Gulf

www.BP.com/GulfOfMexicoResponse

BP continues their work in the Gulf. Visit BP.com to learn how.

 

Cameron: UK riots a 'wake-up call'

British Prime Minister David Cameron promises an all-out war on gang culture following the "wake-up call" of recent riots.

  • Video feedback
  • Video settings

LONDON: The security service MI5 and the electronic interception centre GCHQ have been asked by the government to join the hunt for people who organised last week's riots, theGuardian has learnt.

The agencies, the bulk of whose work normally involves catching terrorists inspired by al-Qaeda, are helping the effort to catch people who used social messaging, especially BlackBerry Messenger (BBM), to mobilise looters.

A key difficulty for law enforcers last week was cracking the high level of encryption on the BBM system. BBM is a pin-protected instant message system only accessible to BlackBerry users.

Advertisement: Story continues below

 

Hunting for the riot organisers ... South London shortly after the disturbances. Photo: AP

MI5 and GCHQ will also help the effort to try to get ahead of any further organisation of disturbances. They have a statutory right to target criminals or those suspected of being involved in crime, officials have said.

Police struggled to access the BBM network last week, though some who received messages planning violence were so outraged they passed them on to law enforcement agencies.

GCHQ's computers and listening devices can pick up audio messages and BBM communications. MI5 and the police can identify the owners with the aid of mobile companies and internet service providers.

The agencies can intercept electronic and phone messages, identify where they have been sent from and their destination. That allows other investigations to take place and other efforts to develop intelligence.

In his speech on Monday, the British Prime Minister, David Cameron, made no mention of his threatened clampdown on social media.

Last week, in the House of Commons emergency debate, he said: ''We need a major piece of work to make sure that the police have all the technological capabilities they need to hunt down and beat the criminals.''

For law enforcement, the difficulty with BBM is that it boasts semi-private - and instant - access to a network of like-minded users. And unlike Twitter or Facebook, many messages are untraceable by the authorities.

Guardian News & Media

Ads by Google

Comcast® - Official Site

www.comcast.com/move

Sign Up For Comcast Digital Cable Learn More About Local Offers

Secure Sensitive Data

www.protegrity.com

Data Security with Tokenization and Encryption

Cellular South AdvancePay

www.CellularSouth.com

Unlimited Talk, Text, Internet & more w/ no contract or credit.

 

Join the conversation

You're the only person reading this now. Tell your friends

  • Add to Facebook
  • Email this story
  • Close

 

 

 

Related Coverage

VIDEO

Cameron: UK riots a 'wake-up call'

16 AUG British Prime Minister David Cameron promises an all-out war on gang ...

Click to play video

VIDEO

Cameron: UK riots a 'wake-up call'

Four years' jail for Facebook post that incited no one

17 AUG Two men who posted messages on Facebook inciting other people to riot in ...

Top Technology articles

  1. Facebook revamped to combat Google+ threat
  2. Tweet revenge at last for shoppers with complaints
  3. Wiki war: 3500 unpublished leaks destroyed forever as Assange hits out
  4. HP fire sale sparks anger as customers accuse staff of gobbling up tablets
  5. 'Bulletproof' skin: researcher creates silk that helps stop bullets
  6. More Technology articles

Story Tools

  • Share on Facebook
  • Email this story
  • Print this story

 

The Age Jobs

 

 

 

 

 

More Related Coverage

Click to play video

VIDEO

Cameron: UK riots a 'wake-up call'

British Prime Minister David Cameron promises an all-out war on gang culture following the "wake-up call" of recent riots.

Four years' jail for Facebook post that incited no one

17 AUG Two men who posted messages on Facebook inciting other people to riot in their home towns during the recent English outbreaks of violence have each been sentenced to four years in prison by a judge at Chester Crown Court.

 

Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/technology/technology-news/mi5-called-in-t...

 

Views: 56

Comment

You need to be a member of 12160 Social Network to add comments!

Join 12160 Social Network

"Destroying the New World Order"

TOP CONTENT THIS WEEK

THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING THE SITE!

mobile page

12160.info/m

12160 Administrators

 

Latest Activity

FREEDOMROX posted a blog post
16 hours ago
cheeki kea favorited Doc Vega's blog post The Many Keys to Deadly Secrecy in our Government
yesterday
cheeki kea commented on cheeki kea's photo
yesterday
cheeki kea posted a photo
yesterday
cheeki kea replied to cheeki kea's discussion Tartaria
"Greetings to you John, You're right and it didn't take long for those manuals to totally…"
yesterday
Doc Vega posted a blog post

The Many Keys to Deadly Secrecy in our Government

We now know thanks to the legislation of FOIA access to federal documents and evidence and the…See More
yesterday
Less Prone favorited tjdavis's photo
Wednesday
Less Prone favorited rlionhearted_3's photo
Wednesday
John Miller commented on rlionhearted_3's photo
Thumbnail

Another incredibly Stupid!! What, no mirrors?

"Brutal post... not sure it’s helping anyone though."
Tuesday
John Miller replied to cheeki kea's discussion Tartaria
"Tartaria: the empire that built half the world's cathedrals, then vanished because someone…"
Tuesday
Burbia commented on rlionhearted_3's photo
Thumbnail

Another incredibly Stupid!! What, no mirrors?

"This movie portrayed plastic surgery as absurd. I guess the numbers in the real world are growing."
Tuesday
Burbia commented on tjdavis's photo
Thumbnail

Redux

"Ah yes, General Jussitri Smolletkov. Good tongzhi. Good tongzhi."
Tuesday
Doc Vega posted a blog post

Unusual Discoveries and Headlines

Archaeologists have discovered an ancient tool dated to be 6,000 years old, but even more…See More
Monday
tjdavis posted a video

Inside Texas HOMELESS HELL – Even Cops Don't Dare Step In! - Documentary

In this powerful documentary, we explore the escalating Texas homeless crisis 2025, where cities and rural areas alike are witnessing a disturbing rise in th...
Monday
tjdavis posted a photo
Monday
John Miller replied to MAC's discussion BREAKING! UFO whistleblowers drop BOMBSHELL on D.C. | Redacted with Natali and Clayton Morris
"Crazy how these whistleblower stories are finally making it into bigger conversations. Makes you…"
Sunday
Burbia favorited tjdavis's blog post The Dems Love Their Demons
Sunday
John Miller commented on tjdavis's photo
Thumbnail

Comprehensive Coverage

"That car needs an exorcism, not an oil change."
Saturday
John Miller commented on tjdavis's blog post The Dems Love Their Demons
"If the Dems are dating demons, then that AI romance shoot was basically engagement photos."
Saturday
John Miller replied to cheeki kea's discussion Would-Be Trump Assassin Ryan Routh Gave Many Interviews with Mainstream Media
"Wouldn't be surprised if there's a whole lot more buried under the surface here."
Saturday

© 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