Stratfor Hacking Victims May Face Retribution for Speaking Out in Support

Stratfor, the security company which was hacked by a group claiming to be from the infamous hacking group Anonymous on Christmas Eve, warned followers on Facebook not to speak out in support of the company, or face retribution.

It's come to our attention that our members who are speaking out in support of us on Facebook may be being targeted for doing so and are at risk of having sensitive information repeatedly published on other websites, the company wrote on Facebook. So, in order to protect yourselves, we recommend taking security precautions when speaking out on Facebook or abstaining from it altogether.

The hacking group Anonymous claimed on Twitter to have stolen thousands of passwords and credit card numbers from the Security group. According to the BBC, a spokesman from Anonymous said getting information from Stratfor servers was easy, due to the fact that none of the information was encrypted, and that user's passwords were often the name of the company.

George Friedman, CEO of Stratfor, posted on Facebook that it has also retained an experienced outside consultant that specializes in such security matters to bolster our existing efforts on these issues as we work to better serve you. We are on top of the situation and will continue to be vigilant in our implementation of the latest, and most comprehensive, data security measures. In addition, they told readers that they are working with law enforcement officials to find out who is responsible for this.

Stratfor, short for Strategic Forecasting, Inc, was founded in 1996, and acts as a consultant to its clients on matters of security. The client list, which has been confidential, was reportedly released during the hack. Stratfor, however, denies this, alleging that all that was released was a list of companies that subscribe to its newsletter.

The attack was reportedly in support of Army Pfc. Bradley Manning, who is currently being held for allegedly releasing confidential information to WikiLeaks.