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That Pentagon leak about Ukraine.

Posted: Tue Apr 11, 2023 3:07 pm
by Mr Gus
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/ ... in-ukraine

Point scoring gamers :roll:
"Analysis suggests top-secret documents were first shared on closed gamer chatrooms hosted by Discord"


That user had, in turn, found them on another Discord server, run by and for fans of the Filipino YouTuber WowMao, where 30 documents had been posted three days earlier, with “dozens” of other unverified documents about Ukraine. However, even that did not appear to be the original source: a third Discord server, named “Thug Shaker Central”, among other titles, may have been where the documents were originally posted as early as mid-January.

“Posts and channel listings show that the server’s users were interested in video games, music, Orthodox Christianity, and fandom for the popular YouTuber ‘Oxide’,” Toler said, referencing the military-themed YouTube channel. “This server was not especially geopolitical in nature, although its users had a staunchly conservative stance on several issues, members told Bellingcat. Racial slurs and racist memes were shared widely.”

Although the scale and sensitivity of the leaks are significant, this is not the first time that an intelligence breach has been traced back to an argument about video games. One game in particular, the vehicular combat simulation War Thunder, has become notorious for the sheer quantity of leaks linked to it.

The game, which has a reputation for accuracy, has 70 million players worldwide, leading to regular disputes about balance and accuracy – as a result, users have made breaches in at least 10 separate cases since 2020, frequently through posting classified documents about the capability of active weaponry in an effort to argue for the digital version of the vehicle to be improved.

In October 2021, for instance, classified design details about the French Leclerc tank were posted to win an argument about turret rotation speed. In July 2021, a user claiming to be a tank commander in the British army posted documents about the armour structure of the vehicle to win an argument. In January this year, design documents covering at least five separate fighter jets were posted by four different users.

The game has become such a shorthand for intelligence failures that the military contractor Raytheon was forced to deny reports that it specifically asked about War Thunder as part of a security clearance process.

Jaw dropping incompetence over & over!
Seems there is more security over a covid party documents details than armoured kit used in times of conflict & pertinent to ukraine / any critical defence operation :roll:

Re: That Pentagon leak about Ukraine.

Posted: Tue Apr 11, 2023 3:51 pm
by Stinsy
Reportedly a number of countries are hesitant to share intelligence with the US because they believe US intelligence to be a sieve.

This particular leak is very interesting because there are a number of factors that point to a low level of competence by whoever leaked it. Poor quality photographs of creased hardcopies with personal belongings in the background.

Re: That Pentagon leak about Ukraine.

Posted: Tue Apr 11, 2023 8:58 pm
by Mr Gus
Hopefully that means they had the underlying photo data still on then, (but doubtful)

Re: That Pentagon leak about Ukraine.

Posted: Wed Apr 12, 2023 7:42 am
by Stinsy
Mr Gus wrote: Tue Apr 11, 2023 8:58 pm Hopefully that means they had the underlying photo data still on then, (but doubtful)
The printouts will have hidden identifiers that show who printed them and when. However these organisations are deeply political if the offender is the son or nephew of someone influential they’re effectively immune to investigation.

Re: That Pentagon leak about Ukraine.

Posted: Wed Apr 12, 2023 8:30 am
by Windbag
I think this stems from people not realising that once it's out there it is free and grows a life of its own.

These are the people who have/need security clearance for work, and then "just show their mates" or "win an argument"

Tech calls this an Inside attack. Not necessarily malicious often just didn't think.