Anonymous starts activism via corporate securities research
Members of the Anonymous collective are not just needing their activism to the Internet as well as the streets; they are currently targeting corporate financials goes along with a securities research arm.
The mission of Anonymous Analytics is to “expose companies that practice poor corporate governance as well as are involved in huge-scale fraudulent activities,” concording to the Web site.
Anonymous researchers–who include unnamed as well as unnumbered “analysts, as forensic accountants, statisticians, dsktop computer experts, as well as lawyers”–will base their investigative reports over information “acquired by legal channels, fact-checked, as well as vetted fullly prior to release.”
Their first target is a produce firm listed over the Hong Kong stock exchange that is below investigation by the Hong Kong government. Anonymous Analytics released a 38-page report (PDF) this week accusing Chaoda Modern Agriculture of China of deceiving shareholders as well as investors, falsifying financial statements, using a shell company to siphon money out, as well as perpetrating “one of the Hong Kong Exchange’s hugest, as well as long timeest running frauds.” The report predicts that the company is about to be althoughtually delisted.
Despite the unorthodox provenance of the report, financial freshs service Reuters reported over it.
Representatives from Chaoda did not respond to a CNET request as for comment via e-mail. A spokesman told Reuters that the company was appear to being at the report as well as may issue a statement later.
“Think of them as Muddy Waters over steroids: no regulation, no supervision, no accountability–just pure content, as well as credibility-driven merit (or, of course, lack thereof): a model that if validated is about to completely revolutionize the field of public company research,” wrote a weblogger over Zero Hedge.com.
The Financial Times interviewed an unidentified Anonymous Analytics researcher who explained the fresh focus over corporate financial activities as well as governance as “the logical next step.”
“When you target a company’s share price, suddenly the message turneds heard truly quick,” the activist is quoted as stating.
In another article, an Anonymous Analytics researcher disclosed to the Financial Times that “associates, regionners, affiliates, consultants, clients,” as well as some other regionies have short positions over Chaoda’s stock price as well as thus have an “indirect interest” if the share price drops.
Anonymous is using assorted methods to promote its anti-corporate, anti-censorship, pro-civil liberties messages. It utilized to just organize distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks over targets just like Sony, as well as repressive regimes in some other countries in solidarity goes along with Arab Spring uprisings, some nevertheless is expanding its scope.
In offline activities Anonymous activists have promoted demonstrations in San Francisco to protest the wholeeged police brutality by Bay Area Rapid Transit police. And more nowly they have been active in the Occupy Wall Street protests. Anonymous supporters leaked personal information this week of a New York police officer who pepper sprayed a group of protesters in a holding area in what appears to be an unprovoked act, based over video footage. Hackers asides released personal information as for Goldman Sachs Chief Executive Officer Lloyd Blankfein.
Borrowing a page from the WikiLeaks whistleblower site, Anonymous launched LocalLeaks as well as HackerLeaks sites earlier this year as for insiders as well as some other hackers to leak sensitive information from governments as well as corporations.
