Feds probe hack of Palin's e-mail account

John McCain and Sarah Palin on the final evening of the Republican convention.

(Credit: Declan McCullagh/CNET News)

Now we know the real reason why John McCain doesn't use e-mail.

Hackers have broken into the Yahoo e-mail account of Republican VP candidate Sarah Palin. And, as you might expect, some snippets have appeared on Wikileaks.org in a convenient ZIP file.

"This is a shocking invasion of the governor's privacy and a violation of law. The matter has been turned over to the appropriate authorities and we hope that anyone in possession of these e-mails will destroy them," the McCain campaign said in a statement on Wednesday.

It's still unclear exactly what happened, who was responsible, or how they obtained access to Palin's personal e-mail. Wikileaks attributed the break-in to the hacker group Anonymous, which has tangled with Scientology in the past.

In terms of embarrassing personal information, there wasn't much made public, save some silly family photographs. But there was some evidence that Gov. Palin conducted work business via personal e-mail--perhaps as a way to avoid divulging data in response to a subpoena or request made under Alaska's open government laws.

Though that wasn't exactly a revelation. The New York Times published an article on Sunday saying:

Her inner circle discussed the benefit of using private e-mail addresses. An assistant told her it appeared that such e-mail messages sent to a private address on a "personal device" like a BlackBerry "would be confidential and not subject to subpoena." Ms. Palin and aides use their private e-mail addresses for state business. A campaign spokesman said the governor copied e-mail messages to her state account "when there was significant state business."

On Feb. 7, Frank Bailey, a high-level aide, wrote to Ms. Palin's state e-mail address to discuss appointments. Another aide fired back: "Frank, this is not the governor's personal account." Mr. Bailey responded: "Whoops~!"

As of Wednesday morning, the [e-mail] was canceled and e-mail to it bounced (apparently Palin had another account, too, called [e-mail]).

Probably the more interesting question is the legal fallout. The U.S. Secret Service is investigating the intrusion, which violated federal computer crime law.

Count on subpoenas already being sent to Yahoo for information about what Internet addresses were used to connect to the Palin account in the last few days. It may be a difficult legal task to force Wikileaks to delete the info, assuming the McCain-Palin camp even wanted to, but in legal terms would be a lot easier to try to get the site to divulge its source.

In the absence of a federal shield law, journalists enjoy scant protection when trying to protect the confidentiality of their sources. Ironically, perhaps, both Barack Obama (at least in the past) and John McCain (as of this spring) say they support enacting one.

[DavidMudkips]

Anonymous is not a group of hackers - it's a leaderless collective of like-minded individuals, from all walks of life.

http://www.enturbulation.org/press-media/faq

[Jeff_Smado]

The fact that Sarah Palin was using a Yahoo! account is almost neglectable in light of the fact that Anonymous members were illegally cracking the email account and deliberately spread private and government information on the internet, on top of all endangering the safety of Palin's family. No "public interest" exists for this, and their doing was just plain illegal. Anonymous is known for illegal and harassing actions for a long time.

Article:
http://www.nolanchart.com/article4803.html

Fox11 News on Anonymous:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DNO6G4ApJQY

Anonymous response:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFjU8bZR19A

Another Fox11 report:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYH-5ke_bOU

Anonymous documentary:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cbwNyKXux70
http://www.anonymous-exposed.org

[j_a_s_p_e_r]

It wasn't Anonymous. Wikileak threw a red herring.
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D939AO101&show_article=1
It was just one college guy that pretexted the lost password system. It wasn't even a hack

[sonymaster101]

you're right, but i also have something else to add. you cant expect anything to be private once it leaves your computer. plus, Web bases email isn't very secure anyways compared to something like a POP3 server. She did this to herself, and should have foreseen this happening. The Government watches us all the time, Why can't we watch them for a change? And if it was actually a real anonymous member that did this to her, they probably would have never been caught.

[M C]

"leaderless collective of like-minded individuals"

AKA, bunch of kiddies.

[obamavoter]

I think it?s wonderful that her email was hacked! I?m not sure why the republican lovers say this is a ?shocking invasion? It?s Sarah Palin?s OWN fault for using Yahoo! as a personal e-mail account to conduct state business.

[j_a_s_p_e_r]

Her own fault? Really, is it your own fault if someone breaks into your own house instead of your government subsidized housing. The argument doesn't hold

[tech_junky48]

I find it very funny that when the name was slipped of a NON FIELD CIA agent, people go to jail, despite it not being illegal But when a governor's eMail account is hacked, illegally, it's her own fault. Come on, if I hacked your email tomorrow, would I be a wonderful person?

[ecotopian--2008]

im im yr inbox, readin yr emailz

[MaLvaDo39]

Hacking personal email is against federal law, alaskan state law, and simply slimy. I hope these responsible are found and pay up.

[victor_sf]

so what if it's against the law???

aren't there enough silly laws?

[[RR]Macavity]

I'm glad the account was hacked. Now we get to see just how much slime she kept hidden due to a loophole in Alaska's open-government law (which, by the way, should be amended with language stating that personal email addresses are not exempt from subpoena if they're used to conduct government business with intent to bypass the open-government law).

This is not to say that I don't think they broke the law - but hey, back in the Nixon era, Deep Throat broke the law too. But in so doing, he exposed an enormous amount of corruption in Nixon's administration.

I wonder what evidence will be recovered from this breach . . . hopefully it'll be enough to deal McCain-Palin a blow from which they never recover.

[j_a_s_p_e_r]

Just read the comments by the 0bama supporters. The arguments are that she deserved it because she was using a private account, that its cool because she must be hiding something. They are enjoying every bit of this because it is not their candidate. First the extreme liberals published her social security number on a liberal blog and then they hack her email, whats next? When you sell your soul for an ideology.

[tech_junky48]

@ jasper

It's just because they know their candidate is dead in the water. No need to get worked up about it. They'll go back to sobbing obnoxiously in the corner after November.

[ferretboy88]

None of the emails had anything of value to a libtard. The dude even said that in his post. I found nothing to get her on. So he posted personal emails anyways and even pictures of her kids and the kids emails. I hope he is hung.

[Eddie-c]

Accounts are hacked all the time, including military ones. There is a FAR BIGGER issue here than Palins account, namely that she was doing State/Government business using a NON-Gov, insecure e-mail account. This alone, and in & of itself, should be enough to have her thrown out of office, out of the WhiteHouse race and put under an investigation for her practices.

[Mr_Byte]

Wow, kinda like having an intern go down on you is cause for being thrown out of the White House, and be put under investigation? Oh wait, that was an Ass that did that, or a Donkey or a Democrat, so that was OK, right?

I think that using a personal email address for government business is stupid, but you kinda go a bit overboard here, eh?

How about we make congress go OUT for their haircuts, manicures and pedicures and massages. That cost $17 MILLION last year. That's a nice little bit of bi-partisan cooperatiion, let's milk the dumba$$ taxpayers that put us here so we can have a facial anytime we like.

[Eddie-c]

Mr_Byte, this has nothing to do with the Clinton stupidness and yes, Bill was an idiot.
Given that Palin was trying to get around the possibility of e-mails being subpoenaed I do not think I was "going overboard" in fact far from it.

With regards your comment about haircuts etc, congress etc should be paying for that crap themselves and NOT on the taxpayers dollar. But then again, if the American populace would actually wake the HELL UP they would want to know (a) why Congress gives itself a raise as the final act before finishing for 'holidays' (b) why it is not publicised and (c) why they continue getting that salary after having served their term!! But too many Americans are simply ignorant.

[ferretboy88]

No govt work was found on her private email to her kids. Dorks.

[gnarlyerik]

"The best weapon of a dictatorship is secrecy, but the best weapon of a democracy should be the weapon of openness."
~ ~ Niels Bohr

[ferretboy88]

The best weapon is to cut the kids head off to prove its not right to do this.

[stuxstu]

I love CNETs point at the end... They want to committ a "crime" and not be held responsible. Journalist are citizens and not above the law. Placing anybody above the law, is the end of this Republic.

Who else should we place above the law? Police, Politicians, Lawyers, the wealthy?

[declan00]

You fail to understand the difference between a media organization being tipped off about leaked documents vs. the media organization themselves hacking into an account in violation of the law and obtaining the documents.

Truly, this is not a difficult concept to grasp.

[victor_sf]

if something is against the law, it doesn't mean it's bad - maybe it means the law is bad. esp. the laws about about computer crimes, copyright issues, etc. are very murky imho

[[RR]Macavity]

So, by your logic, stuxstu, Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward should be thrown in jail because their source - Deep Throat - broke the law when he tipped them off about the corruption in the Nixon administration.

Anyone with half a brain can see you're way off base here.

[tech_junky48]

@ victor

I murder you while you are asleep, in your own house. According to your claim, I'm not a bad person, the law's just bad. Come on.

[buggermenot]

what a moosehead

[William Crow]

Jail time for the hacker!

[volterwd]

Sometimes you need to break a few laws when up against the ever powerful corrupt government. She should be in jail for attempting to to this and yet we are talking about what people did that apparently IS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY to actually expose her... please dont defend her.

[row_row_fight_the_powah]

Row Row Fight the Powah

[jachamp]

Let me see if I get this right. Neocons and Palin apologists are arguing that the hackers violated the law when the mere conduct of Palin in conducting state business on this account to remove the chance of a subpoena is in itself a criminal if not ethical crime.

This is what you can expect from people "of faith" -- no morals, no ethics, and trying to hide their actions.

Palin is a bully and a crook who got caught and is now trying to play the victim card.

[inachu]

You voice my sentiments 100%

[ferretboy88]

The emails were nothing but private matters with her kids. If it was about the state affairs they would of been super happy and posted them also.

[OrsonOrson]

Sarah Palin is connected to Scientology. Here's how:

She has been, and still continues to be, deeply involved with the ultra-right-wing "Dominionist" church movement. READ THIS:

http://markcrispinmiller.blogspot.com/2008/09/sarah-palin-and-cnp.html

The main nexus for the Dominionists is the "Committee on National Policy", which strangely includes non-Christian organizations such as, yes, The Church of Scientology.

The leading "Dominionist" church is MorningStar ministries, which despite being a Christian church, leans heavily on "supernatural" themes and blatantly uses the Scientology Cross in their logo:

http://www.morningstarministries.org/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientology_cross

[Wookiee-1138]

Using Yahoo? What did she expect?

[gcluley]

Of course, it's worth remembering that Sarah Palin isn't the first person in the public eye to have had her online account hacked and her emails exposed.

Anyone else remember the fate that befell a certain Ms Paris Hilton back in 2005? Her case has similar parallels - I've made a video comparing Paris and Palin here on the Sophos website:

http://www.sophos.com/blogs/gc/g/2008/09/18/paris-hilton-sarah-palin-video/

[ddesy]

Wow... as much as I dislike Palin, this is sad. Yes, I think her trying to dodge the system using personal e-mail is a bad thing, but this is not the way to uncover something like that.

[dradzone]

The hacking was clearly against the law. But what was revealed by the illicit hack is that Gov. Palin used the private email for political purposes, not government ones. This is completely proper, and had she used her government one in lieu of the yahoo account, she would have broken laws and custom against such usage.

PRIVATE EMAILS SOULD BE USED FOR POLITICS- NOT GOVERNMENT ONES. This is self-evident.
And that is what the hack reveals-GOV. PALIN ACTED PROPERLY. So, enough already.
It would be best if people would actually looked at such things even if they disagree with them. In my case it has made me get a far more favorable impression of Gov. Palin than before. She appears to practice what she preaches re. demanding a wall between governmental and political activities on government time/sites/emails. Moreover the shoddiness of the activity has made me strongly question some earlier wikileaks supposed asseverations, though not necessarily their competence :).

I am a Democrat. And I headed a PAC for net & web issues strongly supporting freer spreads of info. This hack is abuse of the principle, and illegal. Under any law and at any time.

[The_Decider]

Nope, she has used these emails for her official duties to try and skirt the disclosure laws.

She is just as evil as Bush.

[bknowledge]

On Feb. 7, Frank Bailey, a high-level aide, wrote to Ms. Palin's state e-mail address to discuss appointments. Another aide fired back: "Frank, this is not the governor's personal account." Mr. Bailey responded: "Whoops~!"

Political appointments to government positions by government employee's sounds like government business to me.

[mharrell11]

So I guess based on the many radical left wingers posting here it believe that it is ok to hack email, credit report and the like. Since you all think that her information should be posted all over the web, why don't you post of your own social securty numbers so the rest of the world can see and destroy your lives. Better yet, why don't you hack Obama's email and post it.

All of the radicals will be the first to cry fowl when Obama is elected and you loose all your constitutional rights.

[The_Decider]

She is for warrantless wiretapping, which is the same thing. Didn't you notice that she was using Yahoo to hide her dealings as a public servant? That is illegal.

Palin complaining about this is like a burglar complaining that someone broke into his home.

We lost many constitutional rights under Bush, and will lose the rest under McCain. Wake up!

[solu1978]

You ask yourself .. Is it proper for some one who is running as a Vice President to use a Yahoo Email Add ?
"[e-mail]" !!

Its like leaving a cake open for the cat and then crying why did the cat eat my cake.

NO one likes their emails to he hacked and its bad her email got hacked .. but it shows how dumb she is.

[ferretboy88]

Liberals are nuts. They will be even more nuts when the big boy loses. GW owns the voting machines. Remember I heard that on all the wacko blogs.

[hassan_bin_sober]

Jesus hacked her mail.