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Sharyl Attkisson on being hacked: My computers turned themselves on/off in the middle of the night
Hotair ^ | 06/17/2013 | AllahPundit

Posted on 06/17/2013 12:55:56 PM PDT by SeekAndFind

Via the Right Scoop, a follow-up to Friday’s post. Forgive me for a possibly stupid question but when she says that her computers were turning on and off, she means they were powering on and then powering down, not that they were merely “waking up” from sleep mode, right? When I tweeted the link to this, a bunch of people tweeted back that a computer might “wake up” automatically due to Windows Update. But Attkisson has had professional computer forensics people investigate, though; obviously she knows the difference by now between a computer updating itself and doing something freaky weird like powering on. The question is, how could a remote intruder access the computer in the first place if it was powered down? They would have needed to gain physical access to the machine and installed some sort of remote power switch, I assume. And why would they do something like that if, per Attkisson herself, they took sophisticated steps to erase their digital fingerprints after they messed around in her hard drive? If you don’t want your target to know she’s being hacked then maybe don’t alert her by remotely powering on her computer. Something doesn’t add up.

Maybe she means that her computers did merely “wake up” from sleep mode but that there was no apparent explanation for it, including automatic updating?

She’s careful not to make any direct accusations but here’s an awfully heavy hint about what she thinks the hacker was after:

“Whoever was in my work computer, the only thing I was working on were work-related things with CBS were big stories I guess during the time period in questions were I guess Benghazi and ‘Fast and Furious.’ The intruders did have access to personal information including passwords to my financial accounts and so on, but didn’t tamper with those, so they weren’t interested in stealing my identity or doing things to my finances. So people can decide on their own what they might have been trying to do in there.”

Watch at 1:20 too for when she says she’s “not prepared” yet to talk about who they think is responsible. That sounds like she and the forensic investigators have some inkling but aren’t ready, for whatever reason, to be more specific. Given the emphasis in the clip about the timing of the hacking, i.e. when she was hard at work on Benghazi and Fast & Furious, if she had reason to believe it wasn’t the feds but rather some freelance hacker, this would have been the moment to say so, no? E.g., “Many people have asked me if I think the Department of Justice is responsible but our research points to a private actor.” Everyone suspects the DOJ here in light of the AP/James Rosen revelations and of course she knows that, and yet she conspicuously refuses to rule them out. How come?

CLICK ABOVE LINK FOR THE VIDEO



TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Crime/Corruption; Government
KEYWORDS: hacking; nsa; policestate; sharylattkisson; surveillancestate
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To: SeekAndFind

Pull the plug when not in use.


21 posted on 06/17/2013 1:24:00 PM PDT by Only1choice____Freedom (As long as America's tolerence of failure is not overwhelmed by a desire to succeed, we will fail.)
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To: SeekAndFind
The question is, how could a remote intruder access the computer in the first place if it was powered down? They would have needed to gain physical access to the machine and installed some sort of remote power switch,

Power down your computer. (assuming it was a desktop unit and that Sheryl's was too). Now, follow the LAN cord that goes from your internet box(your DSL modem/router) to the back of your computer. Notice the light on ? Notice also that if you power down your computer, your DSL box still shows (the ethernet light is on) that it is connected to a computer. Unplug the cable , the light goes out.

22 posted on 06/17/2013 1:24:32 PM PDT by UCANSEE2 (The monsters are due on Maple Street)
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To: SeekAndFind

hmmmm....that’s the exact same problem I was having with my desktop.

It was turning off for no reason.


23 posted on 06/17/2013 1:30:38 PM PDT by TheErnFormerlyKnownAsBig (It is going to be Foot to Ass combat on election day....my foot and a Rat's ass.)
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To: rightwingintelligentsia

Saw CBS and panicked.


24 posted on 06/17/2013 1:36:36 PM PDT by Dallas59 (Q: The worst president in US history?)
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To: UCANSEE2

The government has other ways. They have been able to detect data on computers via the power cable as well. They said that it would require a modem for the computer to respond, but who really knows once they have figured out how to detect it what they could do.


25 posted on 06/17/2013 1:44:44 PM PDT by Hawk1976 (It is better to die in on your feet than it is to live as on your knees.)
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To: Dallas59

I must assume that you know her personally. From her work I could not be sure of her political affiliation, but since you are so sure, she must have told you for whom she voted.

Next time you talk to her tell her that I like the work that she is doing! I wish her well. Thank you.


26 posted on 06/17/2013 1:44:46 PM PDT by Cap Huff
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To: Jet Jaguar; NorwegianViking; ExTexasRedhead; HollyB; FromLori; EricTheRed_VocalMinority; ...

The list, Ping

Let me know if you would like to be on or off the ping list

http://www.nachumlist.com/


27 posted on 06/17/2013 1:49:01 PM PDT by Nachum (The Obama "List" at www.nachumlist.com)
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To: JennysCool

It might “wake up” but it is NOT going to “turn on!”


28 posted on 06/17/2013 1:49:49 PM PDT by SendShaqtoIraq
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To: UCANSEE2

You got that explanation right and most people have no clue the net card is powered when a computer is off. (or appears to be off)

It is a useful tool but lawyers, who infect government like cancer, are great at manipulating useful tools for no good.

PGP does work!


29 posted on 06/17/2013 2:12:40 PM PDT by Wurlitzer (Nothing says "ignorance" like Islam! 969)
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To: SeekAndFind

I was told that is what happens when you surf porn sites.


30 posted on 06/17/2013 2:37:28 PM PDT by Cyman
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To: JennysCool

Who knows what is really being downloaded in these “updates.”


31 posted on 06/17/2013 3:07:40 PM PDT by bgill (This reply was mined before it was posted.)
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To: Wurlitzer
Read this if you use PGP:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_Lantern_%28software%29

32 posted on 06/17/2013 3:11:17 PM PDT by gura (If Allah is so great, why does he need fat sexually confused fanboys to do his dirty work? -iowahawk)
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To: gura

Thanks for that link! I’ll see if the keylogger can be detected.


33 posted on 06/17/2013 3:20:29 PM PDT by Wurlitzer (Nothing says "ignorance" like Islam! 969)
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To: SeekAndFind
I dunno, if the computer was turning itself on/off at night:


34 posted on 06/17/2013 3:48:58 PM PDT by PLMerite (Shut the Beyotch Down! Burn, baby, burn!)
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To: SeekAndFind
There is a feature known as "Wake-on-Lan," which allows a computer to be remotely powered on or off, by a signal sent to the network adapter of the computer.

You'll find that as long as the computer is plugged into power, it is at least partially "on." This is why it's extremely important to make sure the computer is unplugged from the power before replacing components.

The WoL feature is often used by network admins to do system updates or install software during off-hours, and it can be done automatically.

Mark

35 posted on 06/17/2013 4:05:39 PM PDT by MarkL (Do I really look like a guy with a plan?)
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To: Dallas59
Boohoo. You get what you vote for lady and your political organization, “CBS” gets what it deserves.

Sharyl is one of the very few "good guys," especially in the MSM.

She broke F&F and stayed on it for a very long time, and has been a bull-dog trying to get information out of the regime.

Mark

36 posted on 06/17/2013 4:07:24 PM PDT by MarkL (Do I really look like a guy with a plan?)
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