US Subpoenas Wikileaks Twitter Account Info

Written by FrumForum News on Saturday January 8, 2011

The AP reports:

U.S. investigators have gone to court to demand details about WikiLeaks' Twitter account, according to documents obtained Saturday — the first revelation about the criminal case Washington is trying to build against those who leaked classified U.S. documents.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said he believed other American Internet companies such as Facebook and Google may also have been ordered to divulge information on himself and colleagues.

The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia issued a subpoena ordering Twitter Inc. to hand over private messages, billing information, telephone numbers, connection records and other information about accounts run by Assange and others.

The subpoena also targeted Pfc. Bradley Manning, the U.S. Army intelligence analyst suspected of supplying the site with classified information; Birgitta Jonsdottir, an Icelandic parliamentarian and one-time WikiLeaks collaborator; and Dutch hacker Rop Gonggrijp and U.S. programmer Jacob Appelbaum, both of whom have worked with WikiLeaks in the past.

The subpoena, dated Dec. 14, asked for information dating back to November 1, 2009.

Assange blasted the U.S. move, saying it amounted to harassment, and vowed to fight it.

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