Unredacted WikiLeaks cables posted online
A major security breach at Wikileaks has seen hackers gain access to the whistleblowing websites archive – and post unredacted copies online.
The sites entire archive of 251,000 secret US diplomatic cables are now feely available on the site, sinking WikilLeaks planned schedule of staggered releases.
More seriously it also puts at risk the identity of informants, human rights activists and other individuals which WikiLeaks had been at pains to protect.
In a statement posted on Twitter WikiLeaks blamed the guardian: “A Guardian journalist has, in a previously undetected act of gross negligence or malice, and in violation of a signed security agreement with the Guardian's editor-in-chief Alan Rusbridger, disclosed top secret decryption passwords to the entire, unredacted, WikiLeaks Cablegate archive.
“We have already spoken to the state department and commenced pre-litigation action. We will issue a formal statement in due course."
The guardian denied the allegations in a statement: “"Our book about WikiLeaks was published last February. It contained a password, but no details of the location of the files, and we were told it was a temporary password which would expire and be deleted in a matter of hours.
“No concerns were expressed when the book was published and if anyone at WikiLeaks had thought this compromised security they have had seven months to remove the files. That they didn't do so clearly shows the problem was not caused by the Guardian's book."