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30+ CIA agents killed because disguised comms sites used Google-able HTML (2018)

throwawayQuwcy 6y ago
The CIA and other US agencies hosted innocent looking sites (yoga, books) with secret login areas for covert communication. Iran found one of these of sites and used this to uncover ALL of them, probably through a shared piece of HTML. Agents then could be easily discovered by state monitoring of visitors to these sites. Iran shared this with China & other powers and at least 30 agents killed. Internal CIA reports said upwards of 70% of worldwide operations had been compromised. John Reidy, a CIA contractor repeatedly raised warnings of these flaws before they were discovered by a foreign power but was ignored and fired. http://media.mcclatchydc.com/static/graphics/20150723-PDF/2014-10-24-ICIGappeal.pdf http://media.mcclatchydc.com/static/graphics/20150723-PDF/20... https://darknetdiaries.com/transcript/75/ https://darknetdiaries.com/transcript/75/ https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18376089 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18376089
- the_only_law 6y ago
  This might be dipping into kooky internet conspiracy territory, but there's a theory that some former moderator of a highly controversial subreddit was involved with such a site. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tF0dCNxfYHk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tF0dCNxfYHk
jonnypotty 6y ago
This is genuinely shocking. When an institution like the cia is more interested in maintaining its image than its agents.. sad times to be an American.
- bostonsre 6y ago
  Yea.. really feel bad for the people caught up in this. I can't imagine the sheer terror sources like those must experience every single day of their lives. Then they are caught and executed (and hopefully not tortured, but I would expect them to be). All due to some little league bs setup that an IT intern could unravel. It makes me incredibly grateful to have a boring mundane life where I don't have to look over my shoulder constantly and have an ever present sense of doom.
archi42 6y ago
Welcome to "cyber", where shooting the messenger is how threats are dealt with. I'm not really surprised at the attack vector, though: For professionals it is pretty obvious, but for a non-technical decision maker? Not so much.
deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
yhoneycomb 6y ago
further proof that the US is decades behind other foreign powers
architect 6y ago
They are still very good at orange revolutions though especially domestic ;)
slim 6y ago
This almost certainly included information sharing between these countries on U.S. covert communications techniques, said multiple former officials — the makings of a real-life “axis of evil.” so you spy on sovereign states within their own borders, and somehow they are the axis of evil when they catch your spies. this is narcissitic perversion at the state level
- foxrob92 6y ago
  Seems like stock standard American Exceptionalism to me. "When we do it, it's a communications network. When China does it, it's espionage".
- bostonsre 6y ago
  Just want to point out that the enemies of the US spy heavily inside the borders of the US also. It's not like we're the only one doing it.
- bitshiftfaced 6y ago
  The difference is that the US either leverages foreign spies (e.g. trade for its own captured spies) or, like captured sources, they go to prison for breaking espionage laws or treason. They don't execute these people like some other countries do.
  - deleted 6y ago
    [deleted]
  - MrRiddle 6y ago
    This reads like Hollywood. US inteligenc
    - bitshiftfaced 6y ago
      I take it you don't think this sort of stuff actually happens anymore, despite the fact that the headline itself mentions 30+ agents being killed? https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_imprisoned_spies https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_imprisoned_spies https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/jul/09/russian-spies-swap-us https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/jul/09/russian-spies-...
greatgib 6y ago
And curiously, the incompetent that are responsible for this are still in high position in administration; to be compared to the millions dollars and efforts wasted trying to lock up Julian Assange for 'theoritically without any proof having put sources at risk'. It's probably time for american to realize that they live under a dictatorship of corrupt politicians!
- underseacables 6y ago
  Well, to be fair, citizens are leaking this kind of information and they’re called “heroes.”
yrgulator 6y ago
wow thats so lame. its not iranian hackers that are sophisticated, its us cia com “hackers” that are apparently lame. each day it seems we discover the emperor’s clothes. a shame really because we needed the cia to bring us democracy. oh wait..
jbob2000 6y ago
I don’t trust the CIA. This could be misinformation to make them appear weaker than they are. I also flagged this for being submitted by a throwaway. Political hot topic posted anonymously? Hmmmm
- polotics 6y ago
  The loss of lives is hard to fake though. Sometimes incompetence is just that.

The CIA and other US agencies hosted innocent looking sites (yoga, books) with secret login areas for covert communication. Iran found one of these of sites and used this to uncover ALL of them, probably through a shared piece of HTML. Agents then could be easily discovered by state monitoring of visitors to these sites. Iran shared this with China & other powers and at least 30 agents killed. Internal CIA reports said upwards of 70% of worldwide operations had been compromised. John Reidy, a CIA contractor repeatedly raised warnings of these flaws before they were discovered by a foreign power but was ignored and fired. http://media.mcclatchydc.com/static/graphics/20150723-PDF/2014-10-24-ICIGappeal.pdf http://media.mcclatchydc.com/static/graphics/20150723-PDF/20... https://darknetdiaries.com/transcript/75/ https://darknetdiaries.com/transcript/75/ https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18376089 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18376089

the_only_law 6y ago
This might be dipping into kooky internet conspiracy territory, but there's a theory that some former moderator of a highly controversial subreddit was involved with such a site. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tF0dCNxfYHk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tF0dCNxfYHk

jonnypotty 6y ago

This is genuinely shocking. When an institution like the cia is more interested in maintaining its image than its agents.. sad times to be an American.

bostonsre 6y ago
Yea.. really feel bad for the people caught up in this. I can't imagine the sheer terror sources like those must experience every single day of their lives. Then they are caught and executed (and hopefully not tortured, but I would expect them to be). All due to some little league bs setup that an IT intern could unravel. It makes me incredibly grateful to have a boring mundane life where I don't have to look over my shoulder constantly and have an ever present sense of doom.

archi42 6y ago

Welcome to "cyber", where shooting the messenger is how threats are dealt with. I'm not really surprised at the attack vector, though: For professionals it is pretty obvious, but for a non-technical decision maker? Not so much.

deleted 6y ago

[deleted]

yhoneycomb 6y ago

further proof that the US is decades behind other foreign powers

architect 6y ago

They are still very good at orange revolutions though especially domestic ;)

slim 6y ago

This almost certainly included information sharing between these countries on U.S. covert communications techniques, said multiple former officials — the makings of a real-life “axis of evil.” so you spy on sovereign states within their own borders, and somehow they are the axis of evil when they catch your spies. this is narcissitic perversion at the state level

foxrob92 6y ago
Seems like stock standard American Exceptionalism to me. "When we do it, it's a communications network. When China does it, it's espionage".
bostonsre 6y ago
Just want to point out that the enemies of the US spy heavily inside the borders of the US also. It's not like we're the only one doing it.
bitshiftfaced 6y ago
The difference is that the US either leverages foreign spies (e.g. trade for its own captured spies) or, like captured sources, they go to prison for breaking espionage laws or treason. They don't execute these people like some other countries do.
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
- MrRiddle 6y ago
  This reads like Hollywood. US inteligenc
  - bitshiftfaced 6y ago
    I take it you don't think this sort of stuff actually happens anymore, despite the fact that the headline itself mentions 30+ agents being killed? https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_imprisoned_spies https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_imprisoned_spies https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/jul/09/russian-spies-swap-us https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/jul/09/russian-spies-...

greatgib 6y ago

And curiously, the incompetent that are responsible for this are still in high position in administration; to be compared to the millions dollars and efforts wasted trying to lock up Julian Assange for 'theoritically without any proof having put sources at risk'. It's probably time for american to realize that they live under a dictatorship of corrupt politicians!

underseacables 6y ago
Well, to be fair, citizens are leaking this kind of information and they’re called “heroes.”

yrgulator 6y ago

wow thats so lame. its not iranian hackers that are sophisticated, its us cia com “hackers” that are apparently lame. each day it seems we discover the emperor’s clothes. a shame really because we needed the cia to bring us democracy. oh wait..

jbob2000 6y ago

I don’t trust the CIA. This could be misinformation to make them appear weaker than they are. I also flagged this for being submitted by a throwaway. Political hot topic posted anonymously? Hmmmm

polotics 6y ago
The loss of lives is hard to fake though. Sometimes incompetence is just that.