A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM

Last week SchNEWS published what, weirdly, might be our most controversial feature to date – INTER-NETCU (SchNEWS 755). We revealed how a number of comments and articles on radical media platform Indymedia had emanated from a server in a government network (the 303 postings). We speculated, given the nature of the comments, that they emanated from a source close to NETCU or one of the police’s ‘domestic extremism’ units.

We can now link to the full list of comments and articles helpfully posted up on Sheffield Indymedia. Read ‘em and make your own mind up. http://sheffield.indymedia.org.uk/2011/01/472619.html

For the benefit of the tape – SchNEWS is not alleging that Indymedia keep a log of IP addresses of users. Of course the IP address is discoverable for Indymedia admins but it is only stored temporarily in RAM, meaning that if the server was seized (and unplugged) the data would be lost, but regular abusers of the site have had their details placed on a filter.

About two years ago, the 303 postings came to light after some IMC UK admins chanced on a comment from admins on the Animal Rights Copwatch site, explaining clearly how messages posted to their site purporting to be from an activist known as Max were in fact posted from behind a secure government intranet gateway. The IP address for that gateway was then added to the IMC filter.

Since SchNEWS published the article we’ve been told that posts from the same government gateway have also appeared on Fitwatch (www.fitwatch.org.uk), Animal Rights Copwatch (www.arcops.wordpress.com) and NETCU Watch (www.netcu.wordpress.com).