Hacker group 'Anonymous' attempts to hijack debate hashtags

The hacker group “Anonymous” is attempting to attempt to hijack debate-themed hashtags on Twitter tonight. Their goal is to flood Twitter with posts condemning this year’s National Defense Authorization Act, claiming that it contains a provision that authorizes indefinite detention of American Citizens.

https://twitter.com/AnonOpsSweden/status/260531357762068480

Apparently their nefarious cyberplot is to copy and repost tweets over and over again, hoping to trend their own hashtag #stopNDAA on the back of debate traffic. An instruction sheet was distributed, including a list of prefabricated tweets to distribute.

These people are very active tonight, with multiple tweets including #stopNDAA appearing every second. Here are a few examples:

https://twitter.com/w3rdVirus/status/260564355932889091

https://twitter.com/DonShappelle/status/260564351746981889

"@demandprogress: I support #StopNDAA and urge the candidates to talk about #NDAA at the #Debate http://t.co/jz7BFeoX" @JeremyLoper

— Mason #UnusualAmerican ??? (@WasonJar) October 23, 2012

#drones just made it! Romney supports, Obama likely agrees. #lynndebate #debate #StopNDAA #occupy #OccupytheDebates #ExpandTheDebate #ows

— Occupy Super PAC (@OccupySuperPAC) October 23, 2012

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For those curious about the actual NDAA, the section that Anonymous doesn’t like allows the government to detain people who either directly participated in the 9/11 attacks or are affiliated with the Taliban or al-Qaeda. So, blowing it up into “save your kids!” doesn’t really hold water unless your kids happen to be joining al-Qaeda.