WikiLeaks
Wikileaks is a website resource and policy analysis and social, both open and secure, whose raison d'être is to give a hearing to leakage of information [Note 1] from including " oppressive regimes in Asia, the United States, in the former Soviet bloc, Africa and the Middle East "while protecting his sources. The site is also support for "those in the West want to inform all the unethical behavior of their government or large corporations."
The site was created in December 2006 and the year after it added 1.2 million records in its database through an online community, composed of Chinese dissidents, Iranian, and mathematicians and technologists Internet companies of the United States, Taiwan, Europe, Australia and South Africa and many anonymous.
The reactions to the site are mixed. Some of his publications trigger violent confrontations and intimidation at the highest level (see below). The site has also faced some technical and financial problems (see below) that threaten its very existence, but its action is also defended by some as the Swedish Pirate Party in the summer of 2010, proposed 'host graciously Wikileaks and its publications are now relayed by major national newspapers like the New York Times and Le Monde.
Despite its name, Wikileaks is not a wiki [?]. In addition, Wikileaks has no editorial relationship, legal or financial relationship with the projects of the Wikimedia Foundation, especially with its flagship project Wikipedia.
Operation and philosophy
Despite its name, Wikileaks is not a wiki. Readers who do not have the appropriate permissions can not change the content of Wikileaks. Wikileaks n'entretient also no editorial relationship with the Wikimedia Foundation and especially with its flagship project Wikipedia.
The site discloses, anonymous, unidentifiable, secure documents attesting to a social and political, even military, we would be hidden in order to ensure transparency warming. The documents are thus subjected to analysis, comments and enhancements "to the consideration of a global community of editors, proofreaders and editors wiki well informed". According to its founder, Julian Assange, the long-term goal is that WikiLeaks become "the intelligence agency's most powerful in the world".
Site security is strengthened by the use of advanced cryptographic technologies. To this end, mathematical processes and highly sophisticated encryption must ensure the privacy, anonymity and lack of identification. Technically, Wikileaks combines modified versions of Freenet, Tor and PGP software design house. Wikileaks believes to be especially so tight "legal and political attacks" and in that sense, "impossible to censor."
Contributors can log in normal mode or safe mode. Following the publication of the revelations of telegrams of American diplomacy in November 2010, the system mailbox for receiving leaks volunteers was temporarily suspended in view of further strengthening the security of anonymity for sources.
Being tested before its development public in 2007, the site was especially active in its native English, eventually it should include versions in twelve languages, including French, and he announced in November 2007 have already received 1 2 million documents.
Wikileaks has topped the weekly rankings with Euronews for the most visited sites in Europe in August 4, 2010.
Profile cases through Wikileaks
On April 17, 2009, Wikileaks has released the full trial of Marc Dutroux case, the Belgian pedophile, especially the summary of its hearings. These 1235 pages summarizing the survey aimed at investigating judge. The origin of the leak would be the Luxembourg journalist, Jean Nicolas, who has covered the case and who like many of his colleagues access to all documents.
Wikileaks has published 5 April 2010 a U.S. Army video showing two photographers for Reuters, killed by an Apache helicopter during the air raid in Baghdad July 12, 2007.
On July 25, 2010, in collaboration with The Guardian, The New York Times and Der Spiegel, Wikileaks publishes the Logs War, 91,000 American military secret documents about the war in Afghanistan. The spokesman said the site has some of the documents could provide evidence of possible war crimes. These documents are presented as an illustration of the alleged double game played by Pakistan as well as efforts to conceal the number of civilian casualties.
October 23, 2010, after giving a preview to the newspapers Le Monde, The Guardian, The New York Times and Der Spiegel, Al Jazeera television to, SVT, Channel 4 and the Bureau of Investigative Journalism sites, Iraq Body Count and OWNI, Wikileaks has posted 391,832 secret documents on Iraq, covering a period from 1 January 2004 to December 31, 2009, and revealing, inter alia, that the war had about 110,000 deaths for this period, 66 000 civilians, and stating that U.S. troops have delivered thousands of Iraqis in detention centers that practice torture.
On 28 November 2010, Wikileaks began revealing telegrams of American diplomacy. 250 000 documents are revealed and their publication backed by five major news site partners, including Le Monde. The New York Times, the notes' provide a unique panorama of backroom negotiations, such as practiced by embassies around the world".
Reactions
In early 2008, the Swiss bank Julius Baer filed a lawsuit against WikiLeaks.org, which published papers on a money laundering case involving the Cayman Islands. Before a California court, the bank received in February 2008 that the California company Dynadot WikiLeaks.org erases the address of its DNS records. Technically they are the link between the domain name and IP address WikiLeaks.org the server that hosts the site. The contents of the site had not been cleared and remained (and remains) accessible via this address. March 1, 2008, Federal Judge Judge White reversed his decision and has not only allowed the operator to reactivate the address but also to maintain Wikileaks published documents available on the Bank Julius Baer.
On April 9, 2009, DENIC, responsible for assigning Internet domain Germans decided to withdraw WikiLeaks.de lists of Internet addresses officially recognized. This decision was taken following the publication by the site of a secret list of Australian censorship, but Heise Online has determined that the owner of the domain, Theodor Reppe, had failed to pay the annual fee , prompting DENIC has repossess the field.
Despite a second suspension of the account, 23 January 2010, since the site exists, the Paypal account is reactivated.
On 15 March 2010, a document classified (SECRET / NOFORN) of 32 pages is published on Wikileaks, showing that the U.S. Intelligence seek to destroy Wikileaks. The document relates, and it concocts a plan to marginalize the organization. Because Wikileaks uses "trust as a center of gravity while protecting the anonymity and identity of persons responsible for internal leaks and other whistleblowers," the report recommends "the identification, public disclosure, removal, and criminal prosecution against the person, past or present, who revealed inside information to the public as a means to weaken or destroy the center of gravity and deter others contemplating the same actions using the site Wikileaks . org. Two years after the reporting date, no source was exposed. It seems that the plan has failed. The rationale for this plan, included in the report said: "Many foreign countries, including China, North Korea, Russia, Vietnam and Zimbabwe, have denounced and blocked access to the site WikiLeaks.org. The report provides further justification by enumerating some embarrassing leaks issued by Wikileaks: "The capital expenditure of U.S. in Iraq, probable violations committed by the USA's treaty of the international convention of chemical warfare in Iraq, battle on the Iraqi city of Fallujah, and violations of human rights at Guantanamo Bay. " For the moment no source has confirmed the authenticity of this report.
On June 6, 2010, we learn from the specialized site Wired News that a U.S. military analyst, called Bradley Manning, previously stationed in eastern Iraq, was arrested by U.S. security services. He is suspected of having delivered to the site Wikileaks several scoops, including the famous video of a U.S. blunder in Iraq (see above). The arrest was confirmed June 7th, 2010 by the American security services. In fact, Manning was under arrest for two weeks - before the revelation of the arrest - and questioned in Kuwait. Adrian Lamo the Hacker (in) decided to terminate the FBI Bradley Manning, when he told him that it had sent to Wikileaks 260 000 pages of confidential documents incriminating from U.S. embassies around the world.
On 26 July 2010, the U.S. government condemned the publication of secret documents about the war in Afghanistan (see above), saying it threatened the safety of American soldiers in Afghanistan. To this end, an investigation was launched by the Pentagon the next day to retrieve the original information. On August 5, 2010, the Pentagon demanded that Wikileaks him immediately return all of the 15,000 documents classified "top secret" that have not yet been disclosed and that those who have already been posted are destroyed. Robert Gates, U.S. Secretary of Defense, strongly disputed the Wikileaks initiative, saying the site "moral", if not legally culpable. Primarily responsible for Wikileaks, Julian Assange, however, would have been warned by U.S. authorities that he faces prosecution for espionage. August 9 NGO called Wikileaks to remove the names of its publications Afghans helping U.S. forces. Few critics suggest manipulation.
24 August 2010, the Attorney General of Liege (Belgium) and the father of a victim of Marc Dutroux have criticized the publication by the website Wikileaks, of confidential court record of the pedophile Belgian reached yet more than 16 months before (above), in defiance of the secrecy of the investigation. According to the prosecutor: "These are real news, fake, very dissimilar, that involve a number of people who may have nothing to reproach himself, who simply was cited in an investigation, which are thus exposed, may be to public contempt, on the internet. " At the same time, the site's founder, Julian Assange, faced with a timely charge of rape by the Swedish courts, which withdrew its charges on the same day, while indicating continuing its investigation.
20 October 2010, the U.S. Department of Defense, speaking to Reuters, called on the media not to disseminate confidential documents 'stolen', related to the war in Iraq that was preparing to publish the Wikileaks site. On October 26, 2010, publication made (above), the Office of the United Nations for Human Rights (UNHCHR) expressed concern Navi Pillay, the High Commissioner on the information revealed by Wikileaks. She says U.S. and Iraqi authorities must take steps to investigate all the allegations in these reports and bring to justice those responsible. These reactions occur when the Swedish authorities have just rejected (October 18, 2010) an application for a work permit and residence for Julian Assange who chose Sweden to benefit from the legislation on protection of journalists' sources is very strict in this country.
On 28 November 2010, following the publication of documents of American diplomacy, Wikileaks said on Twitter, be a denial of service, and the site becomes inaccessible in the evening. The system mailbox for receiving leaks volunteers is temporarily suspended in view of further strengthening the security of anonymity to sources. At the same time, many national capitals are moved to this publication. NATO criticizes the irresponsibility of Wikileaks. White House officials dealing Wikileaks of "criminals" and Hillary Clinton declares that this act constituted "an attack against the international community." A real debate is established on the limits of transparency and democracy on the end of the state secret. Several countries are considering legal action. Moreover, Julian Assange been since November 30, 2010 a international arrest warrant from Sweden relayed by Interpol in connection with an investigation for "rape and sexual assault" started in August ( above). The interrested denies. No official connection with the publications of Wikileaks but this should make it more difficult for international travel of its founder.
See also
wikipedia
