ISIS Twitter Accounts Traced to British Government

ISIS Twitter Accounts Traced to British Government

Twitter has blocked users accused of 'harassing' accounts linked to ISIS. Meanwhile, hackers have revealed that Twitter handles used by ISIS can be traced back to Saudi Arabia -- and the British government. Surprise?

Free American FightersMost voters take no interest in the various “‘isms” that figure prominently in the discussion of politics. On account of Bernie Sanders’ effort to get the Democrats to nominate him for president, “socialism” currently saturates the energy waves – air, electronic and light. Ben Carson’s decision to wipe cheeks of Trump’s contemptuous spittle and endorse him puts openly on display the coition (from the Latin, coire, meaning “to go together”) of unprincipled pragmatism (which sees the primordial issues of God-endowed unalienable right as “barnacles on the hull” of the sinking ship of state) and unscrupulous capitalism (which thinks it is “a small thing” to lure money-hungry “little people” to pay for a fake “University” education with no purpose but to defraud them of what little they do have).Such are the fruits of the licentious political intercourse that has infected the GOP with a politically transmitted disease. It’s major symptom: the inability to represent its members as issues come to a climax in Congress. It reflects what all the aforementioned “isms” have in common, which is a concern with achieving results (and therefore power) with no regard for the way they are achieved. Tragically, voters with no interest in thinking the “isms” through will never perceive this, their common characteristic.They hear Ben Carson mouth pious phrases in respect of God and His precious gift of life, but never ponder the significance of the fact that Mr. Carson thinks “getting things done” (the be all and end all of “pragmatism”) trumps the imperative of conformity with right as God has made us to see it.They hear Bernie Sanders talk about justice and equality, but never ponder the significance of the fact that socialism actually sees politics exclusively in terms of power. It rejects the notion that there is any way of judging the historic outcomes of the history of power but to determine who ends up controlling it.They experience Donald Trump’s performance of their anger and frustration. They respond with a standing ovation at the polls, expressing their relief that they have finally been allowed an outlet for their sincere outrage against the elitist faction’s betrayal of the rights, including liberty, which their government is supposed to secure.They never ponder the significant fact that the man through whom that outlet is offered has spent his whole life entirely in the company and service of those who have engineered and benefited from that betrayal. They don’t think through the fact that, aside from hollow promises of “greatness,” undefined, he offers, even now, nothing but what will continue, in a slightly altered disguise, the arrogant abuse of power that has rightly outraged their patriot love of right, including rightful liberty.The “isms” used to mask the elitist faction’s ancient, self-obsessed ambition, are all of them at odds with the Constitution that was intended to be the vehicle through which we, the people of the United States, expressed our patriotic love in action. Here again, many Americans have seen and understood the fact that the Democratic and Republican parties, two wings of the same elitist faction, have repeatedly perpetrated, approved or tolerated violations of the clear, plain language of the Constitution. They have even refused to reject executive and judicial actions that simply discard its provisions altogether.Thanks to the personality-driven obsessions encouraged by the elitist faction sham, outraged voters act without regard for the true source of these betrayals, which transcends personalities. It lies in the assumption that what happens is all that matters, regardless of the way in which it happens. But constitutional self-government is all about making sure that what is done conforms to the premises of justice and right that are supposed to inform and substantiate the rightfulness of what is done.The American creed, articulated in the words of the Declaration of Independence, speaks of the just powers derived from the consent of the government. It does so because injustice, however powerful, is permanently at odds with the God-endowed unalienable rights that human government is instituted to secure. This is why, through all the years of its existence, the people most sincerely loyal to the United States, and most determined to preserve its Constitution of liberty, have not spoken or acted only to defend our lives. They have spoken and acted, even at the risk of their lives, to preserve the American “way of life.”This phrase makes clear that the true American patriots are not those who offer to sacrifice liberty for safety as the GOP’s purblind anti-terrorists have done. They are not those who dig the foundations of their supposedly benevolent “welfare state” by excavating the rights made known to us by our Creator, as the socialists do. They are not those who play us with false promises of “greatness,” while promoting the establishment of elitist faction rule; or who assert pre-eminent dominion over our choices and our lives, without regard to the justice we owe to our humanity. They are not those who invite us to forget the respect we owe to “the laws of nature and of nature’s God,” even when we go to war with the bloodthirsty fanatics who attack our innocent lives.However, the present sham two-party system isn’t bad simply because it offers us no choice but between one bad candidate and another. Rather, it offers us “a choice of evils” because the elitist faction that controls it stands united in rejecting the premises of good and bad, right and wrong, justice and injustice, on which the institutions of our self-government are wholly erected.Because of this fundamental rejection, even the “best” bad choice the elitist faction’s sham politics allows us refuses to apply the standard, endowed by our Creator, God, in light of which we claim the authority, as a people, to exercise our rightful liberty. Sometimes abusing the name of God, but with no true respect for His power, this implicit rejection of America’s creed tempts hearts sincerely seeking to restore our nation’s soul to remain within the precincts of its impending doom.Though they profess the Name that frees all who believe on it from that doom, they lack even the “little faith” required to activate its power. While they hoard that power within the compass of their worldly fears and calculations, will “even that which they have … be taken away”? Or will they finally listen to the trumpet, certain and true, which they by Name profess to hear, and eject themselves from darkness in time to preserve themselves a nation, God endowed, that is the only one we have worth saving?
Posted by Joseph F Barber on Saturday, March 19, 2016

One of the central arguments used by governments looking to restrict internet freedoms and justify total surveillance is that social media and various other internet platforms allow “terrorists” to spread propaganda and incite violence. And of course, the only way to stop this horrible phenomenon — according to conventional wisdom — is to closely regulate speech on the internet, as well as adopt sweeping surveillance policies. Or at least, so we’re told.

Which is why many were bewildered by Twitter’s decision to block “hacktivists” accused of “harassing” accounts linked to ISIS and other terrorist groups. The move made headlines earlier this month:

As quickly as ISIS sets up accounts and spreads propaganda, hackers from groups like Anonymous and Ctrl Sec are taking them down in their own online campaign #OpISIS.

The group updates followers, linking to the accounts they have spotted, while calling on other to join them and report Jihadi profiles.

But they have said the social media site is shutting them down.

In its own defense, Twitter has boasted that no less than 125,000 accounts linked to terrorist organizations have been removed. But internet activists say that Twitter has done little aside from acting on user-submitted complaints:

A statement from WauchulaGhost, an anti-terrorist hacker with the hacker collective Anonymous, said: “Who suspended 125,000 accounts? Anonymous, Anonymous affiliated groups, and everyday citizens.

“You do realise if we all stopped reporting terrorist accounts and graphic images, Twitter would be flooded with terrorists.”

After the announcement by Twitter angered Anonymous members revealed they have had their accounts banned – not ISIS.

In one day in February 15 hackers had their accounts shut down on Twitter, despite months of finding and reporting jihadis.

Why would Twitter ban users reporting accounts linked to ISIS? Maybe because some of these accounts can be traced back to Saudi Arabia, and even the British government. As it was reported in December:

Hackers have claimed that a number of Islamic State supporters’ social media accounts are being run from internet addresses linked to the [UK] Department of Work and Pensions.

A group of four young computer experts who call themselves VandaSec haveunearthed evidence indicating that at least three ISIS-supporting accounts can be traced back to the DWP.

But the story gets weirder. The British government allegedly sold a larger amount of IP addresses to “two Saudi firms”, which explains why ISIS uses IP addresses that can be traced back to the British government. Sounds legit:

[T]he British government sold on a large number of IP addresses to two Saudi Arabian firms.

After the sale completed in October of this year, they were used by extremists to spread their message of hate.

Jamie Turner, an expert from a firm called PCA Predict, discovered a record of the sale of IP addresses, and found a large number were transferred to Saudi Arabia in October of this year.

He told us it was likely the IP addresses could still be traced back to the DWP because records of the addresses had not yet been fully updated.

The Cabinet Office has now admitted to selling the IP addresses on to Saudi Telecom and the Saudi-based Mobile Telecommunications Company earlier this year as part of a wider drive to get rid of a large number of the DWP’s IP addresses.

So Saudi firms are using IP addresses purchased from the British government to spread ISIS propaganda on Twitter. Meanwhile, activists who try to get these accounts removed are themselves banned. To top it all off, David Cameron is now boasting of all the “brilliant” UK arms exports to Saudi Arabia. We’re sure the Saudis will use those British weapons and British IP addresses for the greater good.

Any questions?