Hackers post fake news release about PM on Tory site

mentalfloss

Prickly Curmudgeon Smiter
Jun 28, 2010
39,778
454
83
Hackers post fake news release about PM on Tory site




A statement that was posted on the Conservative Party of Canada's website Tuesday morning saying Prime Minister Stephen Harper was rushed to hospital after choking at breakfast, may have been the work of hackers.


The statement, which was removed from the site by about 8:30 a.m., said Harper was taken to "Toronto General Hospital" Tuesday morning "after his wife called 911." "He was eating breakfast with his kids when a piece of hash-brown lodged in his throat, blocking air from reaching his lungs," the statement said.

"A member of his security team happened to be nearby, and immediately began to apply first-aid."


The Prime Minister's Office has not issued a direct response to the post, but media inquiries were referred to a tweet from Harper's communications director Dimitri Soudas. Soudas tweeted at 8:35 a.m. that Harper had taken his daughter Rachel to school, and was on his way to work at Parliament Hill.

At first, it seemed the statement had fooled newly elected Conservative MP Chris Alexander, who tweeted a link to the statement with the words "Prime Minister Rushed to Hospital After Breakfast incident." Alexander -- Canada's former ambassador to Afghanistan -- later told CTV he hadn't posted any tweets Tuesday morning, however, and his site had been hacked. He later corrected that statement, explaining that his Twitter account is linked to the Conservative website.

The strangely worded news release triggered a flurry of response on the social networking site Twitter, as journalists questioned whether the statement was true. The news release said staff were "cautiously assuming" that Harper would "completely recover" but suggested his short-term schedule would be disrupted.

"From the looks of things, Harper will miss many of his planned meetings over the next few days," the news release said.

"He had just arrived home last night from his planned trip to the Richelieu flood zone in Quebec. We are awaiting any further word of his condition from the doctors and staff of TGH, and wish the best to him and his family."


Hackers post fake news release about PM on Tory site - CTV News
 

mentalfloss

Prickly Curmudgeon Smiter
Jun 28, 2010
39,778
454
83
I just hope they finally post the budget one day.

Maybe we need hackers to get us some fiscal transparency.
 

mentalfloss

Prickly Curmudgeon Smiter
Jun 28, 2010
39,778
454
83
"Finally, UN has shown some inclination in this regard. UN now considers Internet access a Human Right and considers disconnecting people from the Internet as a violation of Human Rights and International Law, informs Dalal."

It's about damn time.

I'm surprised that we would go against the U.N. on principal. It's like we're becoming the U.S.
 

petros

The Central Scrutinizer
Nov 21, 2008
108,915
11,193
113
Low Earth Orbit
DOD, Homeland Security Collaborate in Cyber Realm


Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, June 3, 2011 – Recognizing the huge national security implications of compromised U.S. computer networks, a senior Pentagon official said the Defense Department is working hand in hand with the Department of Homeland Security and others to shore up vulnerabilities against an increasingly sophisticated threat.
Defense.gov News Article: DOD, Homeland Security Collaborate in Cyber Realm

“America’s Cyber Future: Security and Prosperity in the Information Age,”


I'm surprised that we would go against the U.N. on principal. It's like we're becoming the U.S.

Sorry but I gotta call flat out B U L L S H I T on the story. The timing is too convenient.
 

JLM

Hall of Fame Member
Nov 27, 2008
75,301
547
113
Vernon, B.C.
Hackers post fake news release about PM on Tory site




A statement that was posted on the Conservative Party of Canada's website Tuesday morning saying Prime Minister Stephen Harper was rushed to hospital after choking at breakfast, may have been the work of hackers.

The statement, which was removed from the site by about 8:30 a.m., said Harper was taken to "Toronto General Hospital" Tuesday morning "after his wife called 911." "He was eating breakfast with his kids when a piece of hash-brown lodged in his throat, blocking air from reaching his lungs," the statement said.

"A member of his security team happened to be nearby, and immediately began to apply first-aid."

The Prime Minister's Office has not issued a direct response to the post, but media inquiries were referred to a tweet from Harper's communications director Dimitri Soudas. Soudas tweeted at 8:35 a.m. that Harper had taken his daughter Rachel to school, and was on his way to work at Parliament Hill.

At first, it seemed the statement had fooled newly elected Conservative MP Chris Alexander, who tweeted a link to the statement with the words "Prime Minister Rushed to Hospital After Breakfast incident." Alexander -- Canada's former ambassador to Afghanistan -- later told CTV he hadn't posted any tweets Tuesday morning, however, and his site had been hacked. He later corrected that statement, explaining that his Twitter account is linked to the Conservative website.

The strangely worded news release triggered a flurry of response on the social networking site Twitter, as journalists questioned whether the statement was true. The news release said staff were "cautiously assuming" that Harper would "completely recover" but suggested his short-term schedule would be disrupted.

"From the looks of things, Harper will miss many of his planned meetings over the next few days," the news release said.

"He had just arrived home last night from his planned trip to the Richelieu flood zone in Quebec. We are awaiting any further word of his condition from the doctors and staff of TGH, and wish the best to him and his family."


Hackers post fake news release about PM on Tory site - CTV News

I think it's high time the entire internet was shut down, while a solution to finding hackers is being perfected. Would a sane person put a car on the road before an efficient braking system was installed? Not rocket science.
 

karrie

OogedyBoogedy
Jan 6, 2007
27,780
285
83
bliss
This sounds almost like someone's grandma spray painting graffiti on her own garage door because no one is taking her concerns about area hoodlums seriously, she'd never come up with anything clever or interesting either.

Why on earth would someone go to the trouble to hack, just to post a piece of garbage about Harper choking on a hashbrown? That makes ZERO sense.
 

petros

The Central Scrutinizer
Nov 21, 2008
108,915
11,193
113
Low Earth Orbit
I think it's high time the entire internet was shut down, while a solution to finding hackers is being perfected. Would a sane person put a car on the road before an efficient braking system was installed? Not rocket science.

They got you JLM. Hook, line and shpincter.

This sounds almost like someone's grandma spray painting graffiti on her own garage door because no one is taking her concerns about area hoodlums seriously, she'd never come up with anything clever or interesting either.

Why on earth would someone go to the trouble to hack, just to post a piece of garbage about Harper choking on a hashbrown? That makes ZERO sense.
It makes lots of sense when you look at EU proposals and US internet proposals. It was self inflicted and a HUGE lie. Very disrespectful for those of us who read news from around the globe daily and can comprehend what is coming down the pipe.
 

Cliffy

Standing Member
Nov 19, 2008
44,850
192
63
Nakusp, BC
Now if they said he choked on his new kitten, then that would be a hack worth putting up. I think Petros is right on this one.
 

mentalfloss

Prickly Curmudgeon Smiter
Jun 28, 2010
39,778
454
83
This sounds almost like someone's grandma spray painting graffiti on her own garage door because no one is taking her concerns about area hoodlums seriously, she'd never come up with anything clever or interesting either.

Why on earth would someone go to the trouble to hack, just to post a piece of garbage about Harper choking on a hashbrown? That makes ZERO sense.

I'd have to side with petros until we receive better confirmation that there actually was a hack that took place.

Even if there was, it was pretty benign.

I think it's high time the entire internet was shut down, while a solution to finding hackers is being perfected. Would a sane person put a car on the road before an efficient braking system was installed? Not rocket science.

How about instead of screwing everyone else over, they get better security for their own servers?

Why would anyone ever advocate shutting down the internet for this paltry stuff?
 

taxslave

Hall of Fame Member
Nov 25, 2008
36,362
4,336
113
Vancouver Island
They got you JLM. Hook, line and shpincter.

It makes lots of sense when you look at EU proposals and US internet proposals. It was self inflicted and a HUGE lie. Very disrespectful for those of us who read news from around the globe daily and can comprehend what is coming down the pipe.

Choking on a kitten IS much more believable. Those dam claws get stuck in your throat if you don't swallow them head first.
 

JLM

Hall of Fame Member
Nov 27, 2008
75,301
547
113
Vernon, B.C.
I'd have to side with petros until we receive better confirmation that there actually was a hack that took place.

Even if there was, it was pretty benign.



How about instead of screwing everyone else over, they get better security for their own servers?

Why would anyone ever advocate shutting down the internet for this paltry stuff?

:lol::lol::lol: Every solution to a problem starts with a suggestion that needs some fine tuning, thought it was just a good place to start, not finish. :lol:
 

mentalfloss

Prickly Curmudgeon Smiter
Jun 28, 2010
39,778
454
83
:lol::lol::lol: Every solution to a problem starts with a suggestion that needs some fine tuning, thought it was just a good place to start, not finish. :lol:

hehe

Just to put this into perspective, Sony recently lost almost $200 million because if the recent hack to their PSN network servers. The world is moving on and they're upgrading (we hope) their own security.
 

petros

The Central Scrutinizer
Nov 21, 2008
108,915
11,193
113
Low Earth Orbit
It's a bullsh*t story JLM. It's a sad day when the PMO has to lie to us to get us to go along with their idealisms.

Initially the statement appeared to have fooled newly elected Conservative MP Chris Alexander, who tweeted a link to the statement with the words "Prime Minister Rushed to Hospital After Breakfast incident."
I guess they didn't bother to fill the back benchers in or he slept through the meeting?
 

Cliffy

Standing Member
Nov 19, 2008
44,850
192
63
Nakusp, BC
hehe

Just to put this into perspective, Sony recently lost almost $200 million because if the recent hack to their PSN network servers. The world is moving on and they're upgrading (we hope) their own security.
The security of Canada is in the hands of CSIS. As a former RCMP friend of mine once said, "CSIS couldn't find their own balls in a lit room."

I worked with a 19 year old 12 years ago who hacked government sites on a daily basis. He never got caught because he knew how to cover his tracks. We published a lot of that information on our web site and CSIS downloaded our entire site every other day, but they could not figure out where we got our information. Hackers are a very creative bunch and without them, we would not know 1/10th of what we do know about what is going on. We would all be mushrooms.