After allegedly breaking into NATO’s servers this morning, the amorphous hacktivist collective Anonymous announced on Twitter that they had retrieved a document from the U.S. Treasury providing previously unseen information on the debt ceiling.
The document, which is a page long, was not obtained through illegal methods, says group spokesman “An0n0ps”. In an exclusive online chat with TheDC, An0n0ps stated that the data contained in this document will be “surprising” and will be detrimental to the GOP’s efforts in settling the debt ceiling issue.
The group plans to release the document on an0n0ps.tumblr.com tomorrow morning at 7 a.m. EST, and has promoted the dump on Anonymous-related Twitter feeds, the largest of which has nearly 21,000 followers.
These actions, together with the NATO breach earlier today, have been part of a large, loosely-organized group called Operation AntiSec. Supporters of AntiSec, comprising of Anonymous members and hacktivists from the group LulzSec, are encouraged to “steal and publish” classified government documents online.
So far, AntiSec members have released thousands of classified documents from government agencies such as the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
In addition, they have released documents from the Arizona State Police Department contain sensitive personal information about its officers, as well as evidence of alleged misconduct on their behalf. NATO is currently investigating these claims.
Prior to their NATO hack, AntiSec’s latest major operation involved hacking into the British news website The Sun, altering the front page to display a fake death notice of News Corporation CEO Rupert Murdoch. (President, congressional leaders reportedly near $3 trillion deal)
Any new, unreleased information that Anonymous has on the looming debt ceiling could have a major impact on the economic debate embroiling Washington. Unless an agreement can be reached between Democrats and Republicans before Aug. 2, the nation will default on its debts, seriously damaging an already fragile economy.
Members further hinted at an upcoming document drop about former Alaskan Gov. Sarah Palin.
*Correction: The released document was a publicly-available disclosure form listing contracts granted by the Small Business Bureau in 2011, not a one-page budget document as was reported. The associated Tumblr page with the document has been removed.