Anonymous targets Singapore govt with second tweetstorm

Summary: In a bid to raise awareness over criminal proceedings against alleged hackers in Singapore linked to Anonymous, the hacktivist group called for its second tweetstorm in a month.

Anonymous has stepped up efforts to raise awareness over ongoing criminal procedings in alleged hackers in Singapore linked to the hacktivist group.

The group called for a tweetstorm using the #FreeAnonsSG hashtag for February 9, 2014 at 8am Singapore time, to protest against various arrests linked to Anonymous made last last year, according to its statement on a pastebin. The arrests included those of James Raj Arokiasamy, alleged to be the hacker under the moniker ' Messiah', linked to the defacement of at least one government Web site; what it dubbed the 'Singapore 5', comprising 5 men accused of civil disobedience involving pro-Anonymous graffiti on a wall; and also 'the plight of all the anons involved'.

There was a spike from 7am Singapore time (seen around 5pm U.S. time on the chart), with an estimated over 700 tweets over the past 24 hours with hashtag #FreeAnonsSg.

The call for action appears to be part of a bid to generate a spike of tweets to make the hashtag a trending topic. The statement also suggested tweets include referencing government Twitter handles @GovSingapore and @MFAsg. The tweetstorm is at least the second in a month targeting the Singapore government, and comes ahead of court hearings involving James on February 10, and 3 of the 'Singapore 5' on February, 12.

'We also want to shine a spotlight on the usage of corporal punishment in Singapore as a barbaric response to minor criminal acts and put pressure on the authorities to abandon these practices as well as freeing the anons they have arrested,' Anonymous said in the statement.

Users were encouraged to mention government Twitter handles such as @GovSingapore and @MFAsg.Anonymous has accused the Singapore government of taking a 'heavy handed approach' in its treatment of James, alledged hacker under the moniker 'Messiah'.

In response to queries by ZDNet, the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) reiterated its stand in over the previous Tweetstorm incident in January. 'We do not condone actions designed to disrupt public services or cause inconvenience to the public,' IDA said in its previous statement.On Friday, Anonymous leaked the personal data of 10 individuals linked to government agencies and threatened to release the information of thousands more unless it saw 'a sense of justice and fairness' from the government. The move was in response to recent arrests of individuals linked to the group which it had deemed unfair.