Anons Hack KKK Members as Klansmen Threaten Ferguson Protestors
Nonprofit // Missouri, United States
Following a week in which a chapter of the Ku Klux Klan warned of using “lethal force” against St. Louis street activists, hacktivist collective Anonymous dumped personal details of local white supremacists on the Internet.
The actions are part of the newly-announced Operation KKK (#OpKKK) designed to harass the organization.
Anonymous posted photos and personal information, including addresses and job positions, of Klan members living in the St. Louis area.
When the Klan teased the hacker group in response on Nov. 16, Anonymous immediately took over its Twitter account.
The Traditionalist American Knights of the KKK had been handing out fliers in St. Louis calling Ferguson protestors “terrorists,” and threatening, “We will use lethal force as provided under Missouri law to defend ourselves.”
The demonstrators are voicing disapproval of the Aug. 9 shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown, the police response and racial profiling, in general.
On Nov. 15, on the @KuKluxKlanUSA Twitter account, the Klan had begun mocking the hacktivists, tweeting “Anonymous is nothing but an act. Don’t be worried by this, fellow klansmen. #OpKKK #HoodsON,” followed by “Anonymous is nothing but a bunch of wannabes. They won’t take any action. We will not be brought down by some low-lives behind a screen.”
On Sunday, the Klan tweeted, “We are continuing to read Anonymous threats with much amusement. Still no action taken. #Cowards #HoodsON.”
Within a couple of hours, Anonymous had taken over the Twitter account, replacing the Klan logo with an Anonymous symbol, and changing the bio to read: “Under anon control as of 16 NOV 2014 09:11:47. You should’ve expected us.”
According to ZDNet, Anonymous on Oct. 14 began doxing (publicly revealing identities and personal information) of KKK members in the St. Louis area.
On Sunday evening, ZDNet reported receiving an unconfirmed statement that Anonymous has compromised KKK member email accounts. In addition, a second Twitter account apparently has been hijacked by Anonymous (@YourKKKCentral).