A Classified Website For Government ‘Spooks’!

The U.S. intelligence community is taking a page from popular online hangouts like Facebook and MySpace to help encourage operatives to share information. In December, agency leaders are launching a social-networking site just for spooks.

Although A-Space will be built with commercially available software, organizers are quick to dismiss any criticism about security, saying all sensitive data will be stored behind a thicket of classified safeguards that they are developing themselves. The classified ‘A-Space’ ultimately will grow to include blogs, searchable databases, libraries of reports, collaborative word processing and other tools to help analysts quickly trade, update and edit information.

Classified information will only be available to individuals with the right security clearance.
www.hindu.com...

I can almost see the glee on the faces of hackers! Whatever safeguards are put in place, it will not be 100% secure. So let’s see if it’s going to be a good thing for us!

Cheers!



[edit on 6-9-2007 by mikesingh]

Hopefully they would encrypt everything or write everything in code that would only be translated with some kind of physical cipher. In other words, I totally agree with you. Some guy in a cave in Pakistan reading the station chiefs emails from all the field agents.

Funny idea ... but I'm not convinced it's real.

First I went to The Hindu. Read their piece, noticed it wasn't dated. So then I Googled "Chicago + facebook + spooks" and got WREX TV's site, in Rockford, Illinois. That article lists the site of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

Going to their press releases, there's nothing there on this. Unless the webmaster is behind, I'm kind of suspicious. Even if there was to be such a website, why would they tell civilians about it through the AP?

I can only find references to this story in Chicago papers, nowhere else. That alone is suspicious.

Call me skeptical, but I will postpone judgment on this being true until there's more info.

It's really a hoot to imagine, though.

Profile:

Real Name: Andy W. Hasselburg
Code Name: Barnacle Joe
Expertise: Lockpick, wiretap, planting disinfo on ATS
Here for: Networking, dating
Interests: Oinerology, French cheese, art house film and .357 magnum.

Originally posted by MajorMalfunction
Profile:

Real Name: Andy W. Hasselburg
Code Name: Barnacle Joe
Expertise: Lockpick, wiretap, planting disinfo on ATS
Here for: Networking, dating
Interests: Oinerology, French cheese, art house film and .357 magnum.

Who the devil is this? And what in the name of the great Buddha is 'Oinerology'??

Wouldn't it be great if a load of hackers got into the site and started ERASING the truth in the same way the Intel agencies have done to our wikipedia?
I mean come on,fair is fair-they alter loads of sites after all.

What a great way to find
creative hackers.

Can we say "entrapment" ?

I'll reserve judgement, also.

Regards,
Lex

reply to post by mikesingh


In answer to your questions:

1) A guy I made up to use in my little joke.

2) I don't know. i think it's some kind of code word.

There was something like this a few years back on SIPRnet and it was a bad career move to use it.

Intellipedia, on the other hand, is ok and you're encouraged to use it.

I'm not sure I'll ever figure out the rules.

Anyway, if it shows up on intelink I'll wait a few months and see if people 'go away' or quit posting forever after a few uses.

And I think the word may be "oinkerology" - the science of swine.

Now it's in the international news as being created by the CIA, which, like DNI, has nothing in their press releases on it.

Funny, once again our intelligence agencies are the last to know.

CIA Press Release page

Google search page for latest news on this subject

I had to run to pick up my kids before I could continue. This thread is amusing me for some reason.

I found other sources that call it not "A-book" but "A-space." When I look up A-Space on Google, I get a Philadelphia anarchist organization.

There's still no press release up on DNI, and the page is current as of Sep. 7. The Associated Press site links to two stories that list their source as DNI.

I seriously am thinking this is some Chicago based hoax, as the story trail originates in Chicago, even on the AP.

But, still, I will wait and see. It's something to pass the time anyway.

The linked article states that this may also lead to an unclassified version in the future. So this tells me that the one that is in the works will be on the classified net which won't be hacked.

I know there are few people on this site that have ever been on the classified net so most of the members would have no idea of what the impact could be. I think it is about time for something like this to happen and those who have been on the classified network undetstand this better then anyone else.

There is a interoffice setup like that within the pentagon. Mainly a blog but with similar options as mentioned above.

I'd have to agree with Lex. Great way for them to nab some over zealous hacker's. Too bad no conformation yet on the story. This would be like the anti-ATS, instead of "Deny Ignorance" it would be "Promote Ignorance" but the "You could say the Truth is in here" part would stay the same.

[edit on 19-9-2007 by GAOTU789]

Its always been my personal opinion that myspae and facebook were fronts for government data collection. Its kinda eerie to see those exact two websites being mentioned in the same sentence with the "U.S. intelligence community." Also, the fact the "U.S. intelligence community" is using what these two specific websites have done to their own advantage futhers my suspicions.


How many times has the Pentagon been hacked? How many government computers have been stolen/lost in the last 15-20 years? Im sure theyll be able to secure this info no problem.

[edit on 19/9/07 by Pfeil]

Originally posted by Pfeil
Its always been my personal opinion that myspae and facebook were fronts for government data collection. Its kinda eerie to see those exact two websites being mentioned in the same sentence with the "U.S. intelligence community." Also, the fact the "U.S. intelligence community" is using what these two specific websites have done to their own advantage futhers my suspicions.

[edit on 19/9/07 by Pfeil]

If you believe this, then maybe you show watch this short video:

Facebook Privacy

Pyros

Just heard about this and decided to bump this thread. Thanks to a article on the net, the site login link was revealed. Even though it wouldn't take much to figure it out, not going to link it. because..

1. fuel for some dumb "hacker" that thinks he can get in. Cause liability for ats.

2. Would you really want to go there and be watched? (I dont really care what they watch me do

heres a screen cap. Because im a dork and think this stuff is cool to view

reply to post by MajorMalfunction


HAHAHAHA! I love "Here For: Networking, Dating" in the midst of all of it.

Seriously though? Only in the Chicago paper? I'd think something like tis would be relatively quiet, I mean, eventually it'd get out but so soon?

Can we say "Skeptical"?

This has "bad idea" and "food for hacks" smeared all over it.

The spooks should stick to face to face meetings and brush contacts.

"If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

Ah, a thread from the grave. One that I have long forgotten about and never re-checked.

Interesting video. Ill have to download it later and share it with people I know who love facebook.