News Internet Archive hacked and 31 million user accounts leaked — hacking group 'SN_Blackmeta' claims responsibility

[Admin]

Hacking group 'SN_Blackmeta' hacked The Internet Archive and leaked 31 Million user account data which includes emails and hashed passwords in an SQL file and defaced the website with a pop-up message.

Internet Archive hacked and 31 million user accounts leaked — hacking group 'SN_Blackmeta' claims responsibility : Read more

 

[bit_user]

This is why we can't have nice things.

 

[Exploding PSU]

What did the IA ever do to deserve that...

 

[bit_user]

What did the IA ever do to deserve that...

Oh, lots. Many powerful people, organizations, and other interests would like to scrub certain things from the Internet. As long as Internet Archive maintains a record of these inconvenient facts, they will remain a target.

If I had to guess which site is next, it'd probably be Wikipedia. That would certainly be on the hit list of most who would target Internet Archive. Let's hope their security is better.

There are entire countries where access to these sites is blocked. However, there are usually ways around those blocks. Furthermore, if there's something embarrassing about a government, it's not good enough just to keep their own people from seeing it.

 

[davisch]

Oh, lots. Many powerful people, organizations, and other interests would like to scrub certain things from the Internet. As long as Internet Archive maintains a record of these inconvenient facts, they will remain a target.

If I had to guess which site is next, it'd probably be Wikipedia. That would certainly be on the hit list of most who would target Internet Archive. Let's hope their security is better.

Seems like it might be happening already. Just saw an article that said Wikipedia is starting to get filled with AI generated garbage with "references" that don't contain any of the claimed information.

 

[ezst036]

What did the IA ever do to deserve that...

The pen is mightier than the sword.

 

[Kondamin]

Seems like it might be happening already. Just saw an article that said Wikipedia is starting to get filled with AI generated garbage with "references" that don't contain any of the claimed information.

Wikipedia has been a source of disinformation for nearly a decade, that place is lost.
We’re only a tiny bit away from having to go to the library again if we went to find out about things

 

[bit_user]

Wikipedia has been a source of disinformation for nearly a decade, that place is lost.
We’re only a tiny bit away from having to go to the library again if we went to find out about things

That seems too pessimistic. It's still pretty good on noncontroversial topics, but it pays to check the sources and make sure they actually support what's being claimed. On more controversial subjects, they tend to lock pages to protect them from vandalism. It's not perfect, but it can help.

Ultimately, Wikipedia isn't a primary source and they're very clear about this. It's merely a digest of what other information is available from reputable sources. It's not all good or bad, but rather a tool that can be used effectively or poorly. Your experiences with it will depend a lot on what expectations you bring to it.

IMO, blanket negative statements about it are almost as harmful to it as the vandals, themselves.

 

[trogar]

alternative archive will be useful ( only one for whole planet is not enough )

 

[bit_user]

alternative archive will be useful ( only one for whole planet is not enough )

There are others which I think mostly specialize in certain areas. I once tried one of them, but it didn't have what I was looking for. Internet Archive did.

 

[trogar]

but it didn't have what I was looking for.

So low-skill users fall in darkness ( until alternative archive will start )

 

[Kondamin]

That seems too pessimistic. It's still pretty good on noncontroversial topics, but it pays to check the sources and make sure they actually support what's being claimed. On more controversial subjects, they tend to lock pages to protect them from vandalism. It's not perfect, but it can help.

Ultimately, Wikipedia isn't a primary source and they're very clear about this. It's merely a digest of what other information is available from reputable sources. It's not all good or bad, but rather a tool that can be used effectively or poorly. Your experiences with it will depend a lot on what expectations you bring to it.

IMO, blanket negative statements about it are almost as harmful to it as the vandals, themselves.

Everything has the potential to become contentious and inflammatory never mind just vandalism that plagues the platform.

History is being rewritten on the platform and this was even the case before AI could do anything remotely damaging to it.
Oh yes those sources at the bottom are now dead links

The library of Alexandria was just burned down and monks all over the world are scraping off historic vellum to write their scriptures

 

[artk2219]

This is why we can't have nice things.

That is exactly what i was thinking, then again its not the first time someone has burned down a public library. Some people just want to watch the world burn, then are surprised when their own house burns down as well :-/.