Al-Qaida Eyes Troops' MySpace Pages

A family member forwarded the info below to me. I tried to verify the source, by searching for the author, papers to which he is known to contribute, and didn't find anything concrete. I even checked at Snopes. The FreeRepublic posting is still online, but I couldn't find this specific article otherwise directly connected to Gordon Thomas.

That said, I tracked similar stories to "Joseph Farah's G2 Bulletin". I don't know anything about his site, reporting, authenticity, etc, and I'm not paying to access his site. It appears that the original article below may have come from Farah’s "G2 Bulletin". A related article excerpted from his site: "Al-Qaida Cyber Terrorist's Den Raided", posted Jan 25, 2008.

While I wasn't able to authenticate the story below, it is VERY interesting and a good wake up call to folks as to what COULD happen. In my experience, even when you post pictures on the web, when you upload files, the code for the page includes the original name of the picture even if you don't visually see it on the page. You post a picture from your hard drive titled, "Billy's third BDay.jpg”, and I can easily view the page source code and find the original name of the uploaded picture. Now I know what Billy looks like, and that he just had his third birthday.

I think it would be wise to pass this info on, even though I couldn't verify this specific story. Everyone should be more aware and concerned about what they post on the web.

Al-Qaida Eyes Troops’ MySpace Pages

Posted in January 7th, 2008 by Terresa Monroe-Hamilton in Middle East/Terrorism, Politics

From the G2 Bulletin:

British intelligence monitors operatives gathering details from websites

By Gordon Thomas

LONDON - In an unprecedented New Year “high priority” warning, MI5, Britain’s Security Service, has asked British troops to remove all personal details they posted over the Christmas period on the social networking websites Facebook, MySpace and Friends Reunited.

MI5 Internet analysts discovered al-Qaida operatives had been monitoring the sites to gather details that could be used to launch terror attacks.

Under the heading “Personal Security,” the two-page document, signed by MI5 chief Jonathan Evans, was circulated on New Year’s Day to all British commanders in Britain, Afghanistan and Iraq.

“You are requested to ensure that service connections on chatroom and dating sites do not appear. Be especially careful if you use Facebook, MySpace or Friends Reunited.”

The MI5 analysts have seen that many thousands of servicemen and women had posted personal details on those websites and had included news of their careers, pictures of themselves in uniforms and details of past postings.

“Those details in the hands of al-Qaida operatives offer invaluable information,” Evans warns.

Access to Facebook is restricted to members. But all that is required to register is an e-mail address.

“We now know al-Qaida is using hundreds of false accounts to access the personal pages of many service personnel listed on regimental forums on the site,” states the MI5 document.

As an indication of the danger on New Year’s Eve, one MI5 analyst uncovered the names of 954 servicemen on the Royal Marines network on Facebook and another analyst found on MySpace no fewer than 127 names of Royal Anglican Regiment soldiers.

“Many of the soldiers gave their full names, dates of birth, home towns, names of family members, girlfriends or wives, the locations of where they had served and photos posing with colleagues and weapons.”

“That kind of detail,” warns the MI5 document, “is pure gold to terrorists. It can enable them to plot an attack as never before. And not only on targets in the field, but against the families of those soldiers.”

Last year, MI5 uncovered a plot to kidnap a British Muslim soldier who had recently returned from service abroad and to behead him on the Internet.

“The United Kingdom remains a target for al-Qaida’s home-grown Islamist activity. Attacking soft targets causes maximum casualties and fear,” reveals the report.

Citing the attack on Glasgow Airport last summer, the document adds: “Most recent incidents of vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices were the work of educated men who knew how to use information intelligently.

“The truth is that in 2008 al-Qaida will continue to recruit extremists to conduct suicide attacks both in Britain and abroad, as well as recruiting sympathizers prepared to assist by providing accommodation, transportation and funding,” concluded the warning from Jonathan Evans.

But even as he had penned it, there came the huge embarrassment of learning that the new head of the Joint Intelligence Committee – the supremo of all British intelligence who acts as the link between MI5, MI6, GCHQ and the government – had posted his intimate details on Facebook.

Far from hiding himself from the scrutiny of terrorists, Alex Allen, 56, had used the website to list his home phone number, address and names of family friends, and his hobbies: cycling, card games and sailing. On his Facebook entry, Allen, who took over Jan. 1 as head of JIC, revealed he is a fan of the 1970s American band the Grateful Dead and likes to windsurf on the Thames.

Hours after a call from Evans, the red-faced Allen had taken down his Facebook revelations. But almost certainly not before they had been noted by one of the Islamist terrorists Evans had warned about.

Click here for related Alex Allen story.