Breaking News Story: CRU has apparently been hacked – hundreds of files released

Watts Up With That? ^ | 19/11/2009 | Anthony Watts

[jsh3180]

UPDATE: Response from CRU in interview with another website, see end of this post.

The details on this are still sketchy, we’ll probably never know what went on. But it appears that University of East Anglia Climate Research Unit has been hacked and many many files have been released by the hacker or person unknown.

http://www.cru.uea.ac.uk/cru/annrep93/cru.jpg

UPDATED: Original image was for Met Office – corrected This image source: www.cru.uea.ac.uk

I’m currently traveling and writing this from an airport, but here is what I know so far:

An unknown person put postings on some climate skeptic websites that advertised an FTP file on a Russian FTP server, here is the message that was placed on the Air Vent today:

We feel that climate science is, in the current situation, too important to be kept under wraps.

We hereby release a random selection of correspondence, code, and documents

The file was large, about 61 megabytes, containing hundreds of files.

It contained data, code, and emails from Phil Jones at CRU to and from many people.

I’ve seen the file, it appears to be genuine and from CRU. Others who have seen it concur- it appears genuine. There are so many files it appears unlikely that it is a hoax. The effort would be too great.

Here is some of the emails just posted at Climate Audit on this thread:

http://www.climateaudit.org/?p=7801#comments

I’ve redacted email addresses and direct phone numbers for the moment. The emails all have US public universities in the email addresses, making them public/FOIA actionable I believe. From: Phil Jones To: mann@vxxxxx.xxx Subject: Fwd: John L. Daly dead Date: Thu Jan 29 14:17:01 2004

From: Timo H‰meranta To: Subject: John L. Daly dead Date: Thu, 29 Jan 2004 12:04:28 +0200 X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook, Build 10.0.4510 Importance: Normal

Mike, In an odd way this is cheering news ! One other thing about the CC paper – just found another email – is that McKittrick says it is standard practice in Econometrics journals to give all the data and codes !! According to legal advice IPR overrides this.

Cheers Phil

“It is with deep sadness that the Daly Family have to announce the sudden death of John Daly.Condolences may be sent to John’s email account (daly@john-daly.com) “ Reported with great sadness

Timo H‰meranta xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Timo H‰meranta, LL.M. Moderator, Climatesceptics Martinlaaksontie 42 B 9 01620 Vantaa Finland, Member State of the European Union

Moderator: timohame@yxxxxx.xxx Private: timo.hameranta@xxxxx.xx

Home page: [1]personal.inet.fi/koti/hameranta/climate.htm

Moderator of the discussion group “Sceptical Climate Science” [2]groups.yahoo.com/group/climatesceptics

“To dwell only on horror scenarios of the future shows only a lack of imagination”. (Kari Enqvist)

“If the facts change, I’ll change my opinion. What do you do, Sir” (John Maynard Keynes)

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Prof. Phil Jones Climatic Research Unit Telephone +44 (0)xxxxxx School of Environmental Sciences Fax +44 (0) xxxxxx University of East Anglia Norwich Email p.jones@xxx.xx.xx NR4 7TJ UK —————————————————————————-

References

1. http://personal.inet.fi/koti/hameranta/climate.htm 2. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/climatesceptics From: Phil Jones To: ray bradley ,mann@xxxxx.xxx, mhughes@xxxx.xxx Subject: Diagram for WMO Statement Date: Tue, 16 Nov 1999 13:31:15 +0000 Cc: k.briffa@xxx.xx.xx,t.osborn@xxxx.xxx

Dear Ray, Mike and Malcolm, Once Tim’s got a diagram here we’ll send that either later today or first thing tomorrow. I’ve just completed Mike’s Nature trick of adding in the real temps to each series for the last 20 years (ie from 1981 onwards) amd from 1961 for Keith’s to hide the decline. Mike’s series got the annual land and marine values while the other two got April-Sept for NH land N of 20N. The latter two are real for 1999, while the estimate for 1999 for NH combined is +0.44C wrt 61-90. The Global estimate for 1999 with data through Oct is +0.35C cf. 0.57 for 1998. Thanks for the comments, Ray.

Cheers Phil

Prof. Phil Jones Climatic Research Unit Telephone +44 (0) xxxxx School of Environmental Sciences Fax +44 (0) xxxx University of East Anglia Norwich Email p.jones@xxxx.xxx NR4 7TJ UK

—————————————————————————- From: Jonathan Overpeck To: “Michael E. Mann” Subject: letter to Senate Date: Tue, 22 Jul 2003 16:49:31 -0700 Cc: Caspar M Ammann , Raymond Bradley , Keith Briffa , Tom Crowley , Malcolm Hughes , Phil Jones , mann@xxxxx.xxx, jto@xxxxx.xx.xxx, omichael@xxxxx.xxx, Tim Osborn , Kevin Trenberth , Tom Wigley

Hi all – I’m not too comfortable with this, and would rather not sign – at least not without some real time to think it through and debate the issue. It is unprecedented and political, and that worries me.

My vote would be that we don’t do this without a careful discussion first.

I think it would be more appropriate for the AGU or some other scientific org to do this - e.g., in reaffirmation of the AGU statement (or whatever it’s called) on global climate change.

Think about the next step – someone sends another letter to the Senators, then we respond, then…

I’m not sure we want to go down this path. It would be much better for the AGU etc to do it.

What are the precedents and outcomes of similar actions? I can imagine a special-interest org or group doing this like all sorts of other political actions, but is it something for scientists to do as individuals?

Just seems strange, and for that reason I’d advise against doing anything with out real thought, and certainly a strong majority of co-authors in support.

Cheers, Peck

Dear fellow Eos co-authors, Given the continued assault on the science of climate change by some on Capitol Hill, Michael and I thought it would be worthwhile to send this letter to various members of the U.S. Senate, accompanied by a copy of our Eos article. Can we ask you to consider signing on with Michael and me (providing your preferred title and affiliation). We would like to get this out ASAP. Thanks in advance, Michael M and Michael O

______________________________________________________________ Professor Michael E. Mann Department of Environmental Sciences, Clark Hall University of Virginia Charlottesville, VA 22903 _______________________________________________________________________ e-mail: mann@xxxxxx.xxx Phone: (434) 924-7770 FAX: (434) xxx-xxxxx http://www.evsc.virginia.edu/faculty/people/mann.shtml

Attachment converted: Macintosh HD:EOS.senate letter-final.doc (WDBN/MSWD) (00055FCF)

–

Jonathan T. Overpeck Director, Institute for the Study of Planet Earth Professor, Department of Geosciences Mail and Fedex Address: Institute for the Study of Planet Earth 715 N. Park Ave. 2nd Floor University of Arizona Tucson, AZ 85721 direct tel: +xxxx fax: +1 520 792-8795 http://www.geo.arizona.edu/Faculty_Pages/Overpeck.J.html http://www.ispe.arizona.edu/ It appears that the proverbial Climate Science Cat is out of the bag.

Developing story – more later

UPDATE1: Steve McIntyre posted this on Climate Audit, I used a screen cap rtaher than direct link becuase CA is overloaded and slow at the moment.

UPDATE2: Response from CRU h/t to WUWT reader “Nev”

http://briefingroom.typepad.com/the_briefing_room/2009/11/hadleycru-says-leaked-data-is-real.html

The director of Britain’s leading Climate Research Unit, Phil Jones, has told Investigate magazine’s TGIF Edition tonight that his organization has been hacked, and the data flying all over the internet appears to be genuine.

In an exclusive interview, Jones told TGIF, “It was a hacker. We were aware of this about three or four days ago that someone had hacked into our system and taken and copied loads of data files and emails.”

“Have you alerted police”

“Not yet. We were not aware of what had been taken.”

Jones says he was first tipped off to the security breach by colleagues at the website RealClimate.

“Real Climate were given information, but took it down off their site and told me they would send it across to me. They didn’t do that. I only found out it had been released five minutes ago.”

TGIF asked Jones about the controversial email discussing “hiding the decline”, and Jones explained what he was trying to say….

[winoneforthegipper]

Interesting exchange....

M,

This is truly awful. GRL has gone downhill rapidly in recent years.

I think the decline began before Saiers. I have had some unhelpful dealings with him recently with regard to a paper Sarah and I have on glaciers — it was well received by the referees, and so is in the publication pipeline. However, I got the impression that Saiers was trying to keep it from being published.

Proving bad behavior here is very difficult. If you think that Saiers is in the greenhouse skeptics camp, then, if we can find documentary evidence of this, we could go through official AGU channels to get him ousted. Even this would be difficult.

How different is the GRL paper from the Nature paper? Did the authors counter any of the criticisms? My experience with Douglass is that the identical (bar format changes) paper to one previously rejected was submitted to GRL.

T.

and

Dear All,

Just a heads up. Apparently, the contrarians now have an “in” with GRL. This guy Saiers has a prior connection w/ the University of Virginia Dept. of Environmental Sciences that causes me some unease.

I think we now know how the various Douglass et al papers w/ Michaels and Singer, the Soon et al paper, and now this one have gotten published in GRL,

Mike

from the breaking website....airvent

http://noconsensus.wordpress.com/2009/11/20/4567/#more-6208

[ichabod1]

See, this crap is why I have trouble believeing in the obesity problem either. This government has GOT TO GO!

[mills044]

Found this article, talking about how the CRU tried to avoid a Freedom of Information Act:

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/08/13/cru_missing/

CRU employee: “...Why should we turn the data over to someone who is trying to discredit it?” (not exact quote)

Love it when the truth gets out.

[ichabod1]

The president wears a brown bra, repeat, the president wears a brown bra.

[Para-Ord.45]

Think I`ll create an account at RealClimate and taunt them mercilessly !

Anyone know what the Soros front group is saying over there at RealClimate ?

LOL

[b4its2late]

So in this case, all this hacking is a good thing?

[maggief]

“I wonder if Algore is amongst the emailers?”

I hope it ties to him and his minions.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

rlmorel;

If true, these dufuses were actually stupid enough to keep emails essentially saying “GET RID OF THE INCRIMINATING EMAILS THAT SHOW WE FUDGED AND MANIPULATED DATA! AND TELL SO-AND-SO TO GET RID OF HIS TOO!”

Nice summary....

***********************************

And from post #112: thanks to roses of sharon

*******************************EXCERPT************************************

(from HotAir)http://www.climateaudit.org/

Ed, one of the commenters over at Climate Audit says if you follow the money, it leads to Soros. I dont have time to verify the accuracy of that, but you might want to look into it.

mrfixit on November 20, 2009 at 9:22 AM

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Tried to download that but got no results that I could tell,...said it was waiting ......

[PapaBear3625]

Telegraph.co.uk now has a long article on it.

[maggief]

Rahm Emanuel: “You never want a serious crisis to go to waste.”

(Manufactured or otherwise, it seems.)

[DaisyCutter]

Torrent link: http://thepiratebay.org/torrent/5171206/Hadley_CRU_Files_(FOI2009.zip)

[stayathomemom]

...if you follow the money, it leads to Soros.

Woe, not surprising though.

[rlmorel]

Pfft...as if none of us doubted all this leads back to that Nazi collaborating POS in some way!

Of course, how long will it be before someone tries to paint this as a part of the VRWC, concocted over bourbon and benedictine in some late night underground bunker somewhere...:)

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

I just got my copy of the book Shadow Government...and on page 80 and 81 there is text from a 60 minutes questioning of Soros on Dec 30, 1998 in regards to the fact that even though he was a Jew and aged 14 he posed as a Christian and watched other Jews shipped off to prison and with his protector went out and helped with confiscation of property of the Jews,...and this gave him no problems with his conscience....

****************************************

Now that is rather chilling.

[SteamShovel]

one talks of stacking the peer-review process to prevent qualified skeptical scientists from getting their research papers considered

This type of academic fraud should be prosecuted.....

.....The motive is money for research, to push a political agenda (socialism), and prestige.

Real economic harm has been done and will continue to be done in the future.

All of us have been harmed economically by this.

Where are the "Class Action" lawsuits?

[sarasota]

Awaiting your updates!

[ichabod1]

It should show that the governmetn is nothing BUT fraud, is corrupt beyond even description, and that the whole rotten structure is going to come collapsing down just like the soviet union. Thanks communists.

[massmike]

read later

[theDentist]

...concocted over bourbon and benedictine in some late night underground bunker somewhere...

Or in someone's attic? I'd say, not long.

bourbon and benedictine? thinsg that make you go buuuugh!