More Details On the Bugging of Sharryl Attkisson's Computer

Transparent.

So CBS News hires an independent computer analyst whom Attkisson identifies as "Jerry Patel," also a pseudonym. He finds a massive amount of suspicious activity in the computer, including the removal of all kinds of log messages. The author describes the scene as "Patel" does his work: "Now he's breathing heavily. It alarms me because it alarms him and he’s not easily alarmed. His voice becomes more formal and he launches into what sounds like a speech for posterity. 'In my professional opinion, someone has accessed this box... I see evidence that shows a deliberate and skilled attempt to clean the log files of activity.'" Intrusions of this caliber, concludes "Patel," are "far beyond the the abilities of even the best nongovernment hackers."

...

More drama arises in September 2013. As White House officials pressure CBS News executives over Attkisson's Benghazi reporting, something goes haywire with her computer. "That very night, with [White House spokesman Eric] Schultz, [White House Press Secretary Jay] Carney and company freshly steaming over my Benghazi reporting, I’m home doing final research and crafting questions for the next day's interview with [Thomas] Pickering. Suddenly data in my computer file begins wiping at hyperspeed before my very eyes. Deleted line by line in a split second: it's gone, gone, gone." Attkisson grabbed her iPhone to record the madness.

Don Allison, a security specialist at Kore Logic, takes a close look at Attkisson's iMac. The results turn up scandalous, as Attkisson writes: "While a great deal of data has been expertly wiped in an attempt to cover-up the deed, Don is able to find remnants of what was once there. There's key evidence of a government computer connection to my computer. A sort of backdoor link that leads to an ISP address for a government computer that can’t be accessed by the general public on the Web. It's an undeniable link to the U.S. government."

Via Mary-Katherine Ham, who links this to the USAToday report from yesterday in which Susan Page called the Obama Administration the greatest threat to the media in history.

posted by Ace at 11:25 AM

| Access Comments