The Actions of Anonymous (part 3 of 3)

Hello again LockBoxx fans, and welcome back for the exciting conclusion of the Anonymous saga. As you previously read, Anonymous was making quite a few enemies with their brazen support of WikiLeaks, and audacious DDoS attacks. Thus, it was no surprise when CEO Aaron Barr of HBGary Federal took on the challenge of 'unmasking Anonymous' and bringing down the entire organization. He used various social engineering techniques, such as tracking individuals down on Facebook, and working his way into their network via IRC chatrooms. He was using methodologies he planned on releasing at the BSides security conference in San Francisco, with exposing Anonymous being his demo. This was by no means kept a secret. Eventually, Aaron confronted 3 Anonymous members that he believed to be 'in charge' threatening to give their names to the FBI. And that's when it all went up in flames for Aaron. Anonymous used its own methods of social engineering, with some SQL injection as well, to gain access to all of Aaron's personal e-mails. Then they published them to the Internet, forever discrediting Aaron's work as a security professional. It was a crash and burn moment for Aaron, forcing him to resign from his job at HBGary. The e-mails also leaked tons of vital information about HB Gary's work with other companies, and even a nasty cover up operation. Turns out, The Bank Of America had hired a number of security firms to start a disinformation campaign against WikiLeaks. This exposure of downright malicious corporate tactics, spurred Anonymous into another hacktivist endeavor. The leak of The Bank Of America's e-mails, exposed tons of the bank's malicious tactics. The Bank of America lied to hundreds of their own customers, causing their homes to foreclose so they could make profit, "The leaker claims that during the federal takeovers of IndyMac Federal, Balboa Insurance/Countrywide knowingly hid foreclosure information, falsified loan documents, and reported incorrect volumes to federal auditors to "avoid fines for falling behind on Loan Modification, purposely and knowingly adjusting premiums for REO (Real Estate Owned) insurance for their corporate clients while denying forbearances for individual borrowers."" There you have it, Anonymous exposing individual, corporate and federal malicious practices, one hack at a time.