New Leaks Threaten Human Smuggling Talks and Lead To Hack Attacks On Australia 304
cold fjord writes "Indonesia is threatening to cease cooperation with Australia on human smuggling as a result of further Snowden leaks published by the Guardian and other papers over the weekend. The leaks involve reported use of Australian embassies across Asia for signals intelligence as well as reports of intelligence operations by Australia and the U.S. in 2007 at the U.N. climate change conference in Bali. (In 2002 a terrorist attack at the Sari club in Bali killed 240 people, including 88 Australians.) As a result of the revelations, various groups are reportedly taking revenge, including claimed or alleged involvement of the Java Cyber Army, members of Anonymous in Indonesia, and possibly other hacker groups. They are attacking hundreds of Australian websites. Among the reported victims are Queensland hospital, a children's cancer association an anti-slavery charity, and many more."
Re:Not the leaks (Score:3, Informative)
The person who submitted this propaganda piece.
Scary headline is disingenuous (Score:5, Informative)
From TFA:
When he was questioned about what action Indonesia would take against Australia, the foreign minister [Dr. Marty Natalegawa] said: “One of them obviously is the agreement to exchange information, exchange even intelligence information, in fact, to address the issue of people smuggling."
Basically, Indonesia is leveraging the disclosures to force Australia to agree to exchange intelligence information to address the problem of human trafficking. Nowhere in the TFA says that Indonesia is going to cancel the talks with Australia over this. Australia broke the trust, its up to them to fix it.
Indiustrial Espionage contributes to smuggling (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Mod parent up, not down! (Score:3, Informative)
No, what caused harm was the act that was committed not that it was exposed. Stop being an asshat. There would have been no harm at all if the spying had not been done in the first place.
Re:Not the leaks (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Indiustrial Espionage contributes to smuggling (Score:5, Informative)
It is *not* illegal to enter Australia via any means to seek asylum, despite what so many of our politicians say. There are zero "illegal asylum seekers".
Asylum seekers may well perform illegal acts or use illegal services to get to Australia, but the actual act of coming to Australia to seek asylum is not illegal, whether they come by boat, plane or walk across the ocean floor.
They may be determined not to be asylum seekers, in which case their continued residence in Australia may be determined to be illegal, but that is separate from the act of coming to Australia to seek asylum.
Re:Not the leaks (Score:2, Informative)
As far as I can tell, no religious supremicist organisations in Australia had publicly threatened to kill visiting Indonesians. If they did, Australia's government would "spy" on them for the Indonesians. Indonesia's Islamo-fascist citizens threaten to kill Australians and Australia wants to know if their threats are going to be followed through. Also they want to know If they are sponsored by elements of the Indonesian government. The espionage is justified.
Because every general and his aide in Indonesia skims off the top of the asylum seeker trade they just want an excuse to keep it going. Who cares who drowns after their leaky boat is set on fire in the middle of the ocean.
Re:Not the leaks (Score:5, Informative)
I'm curious why Snowden is doing this now. The domestic revelations were very important, and I thank him for them. These foreign revelations are another story. I doubt they do any harm, or at least no more than finding out that the sun rises in the east. But why? Does he think these are a big deal? Does he just want revenge? Or (one to be hoped for) he just wants to keep making noise about the NSA until something is done about the domestic situation. Inquiring minds want to know.
I think it's worth remembering that ever since (or prior to) Russia granted Snowden's request for asylum, the press has been in control of the manner in which Snowden's material is published. No new leaks (by Snowden) was a condition of Russia's for granting his request for asylum.
Re:Indiustrial Espionage contributes to smuggling (Score:4, Informative)
It is *not* illegal to enter Australia via any means to seek asylum, despite what so many of our politicians say. There are zero "illegal asylum seekers".
Asylum seekers may well perform illegal acts or use illegal services to get to Australia, but the actual act of coming to Australia to seek asylum is not illegal, whether they come by boat, plane or walk across the ocean floor.
They may be determined not to be asylum seekers, in which case their continued residence in Australia may be determined to be illegal, but that is separate from the act of coming to Australia to seek asylum.
Correct! And there are far more people illegally overstaying tourist and other visas than there are asylum seekers risking their lives in unsafe boats to legally flee persecution.
Re:Not the leaks (Score:2, Informative)
Apparently you aren't aware that governments almost universally have powers that ordinary individual citizens don't... [such as] confidential intelligence information necessary to protect society.
Snowden didn't reveal confidential data needed to protect society, he revealed the capacity for dragnet surveillance and the systematic compromise of internet infrastructure. Every reasonable person accepts that governments need to have some secrets, but that license ends where the coverups begin.
The monopoly granted to government by the people is to be exercised solely on their behalf and with their consent.
Re:Not the leaks (Score:2, Informative)
Speech by Eisenhower warning of Military industrial complex:
If the so called Military Industrial Complex was all that powerful today, it's share of the economy (%GDP) wouldn't be on the decline towards the lowest level since 1940.
Defense Budget Priorities: Opting for American Decline [heritage.org]