Hackers take over U.S. government website in retaliation for death of Aaron Swartz
- Family and friends of Aaron Swartz, 26, charged with illegally downloading academic articles, say he was hounded by federal prosecutors
- Swartz committed suicide at his Brooklyn apartment on January 11
- Hacker group Anonymous attack U.S. Sentencing Commission website and claim that with the death of Swartz, a 'line was crossed'
The website of the commission, an independent agency of the judicial branch, was taken over early Saturday.
Hackers replaced the homescreen with a message warning that when Swartz killed himself two weeks ago 'a line was crossed.'
Hacked: This screenshot shows the hijacking of
the sentencing commission website by Anonymous. The group claim they
have already infiltrated several other government sites
Anonymous say they've infiltrated several government computer systems and copied secret information that they now threaten to make public.
The message on the sentencing website partly read:
'Citizens of the world, Anonymous has observed for some time now the trajectory of justice in the United States with growing concern.
'We have marked the departure of this system from the noble ideals in which it was born and enshrined.
'We have seen the erosion of due process, the dilution of constitutional rights, the usurpation of the rightful authority of courts by the "discretion" or prosecutors.
This is the moment Swartz was caught illegally
downloading academic journals. The 26-year-old killed himself on January
11 after his friends and family say he was bullied by prosecutors
Swartz was a gifted programmer and campaigner who helped to create Reddit and CSS
Family and friends of Swartz, who helped create Reddit and RSS, say he killed himself after he was hounded by federal prosecutors.
Officials say he helped post millions of court documents for free online and that he illegally downloaded millions of academic articles from an online clearinghouse.