Former WikiLeaks Employees Start Their Own Leaks' Site

By

It’s pretty common for start-ups to be staffed by employees who first worked at more established companies. But in the case of OpenLeaks, the founding employees apparently got fed up with their former boss, Julian Assange, founder of WikiLeaks.

Assange is now fighting extradition to Sweden where authorities want to question him about two sexual assault investigations. He also has sought to be a highly public figure, and has made WikiLeaks into a highly controversial site offering embarrassing and sometimes damaging information on government leaders.

Last month, Assange told the New Statesman in an interview that he has “files” on Rupert Murdoch and his powerful media company, News Corporation. TechZone360 reports that Assange will release the files on Murdoch “if something happens” to him or WikiLeaks.

The New York Times reports that “a dozen of his former colleagues are creating an alternative Web site for leaks to be governed by what they characterize as a revised vision of radical transparency.”

Herbert Snorrason, a programmer working on OpenLeaks, says the site tries to “avoid the ‘influence of a single figurehead’ by refusing to handle documents itself. Instead, it will act as a neutral conduit to connect leakers with media and human rights organizations,” according to The Times.

“OpenLeaks is a project that aims at making whistleblowing safer and more widespread,” adds the mission posted on the site.

“This will be done by providing dedicated and generally free services to whistleblowers and organizations interested in transparency,” the site adds. “We will also create a Knowledge Base aiming to provide a comprehensive reference to all areas surrounding whistleblowing.”

OpenLeaks says it won’t “accept or publish documents on its own platform” but will create "digital dropboxes" for its members. It wants “the process of submitting leaks safe and easy.”

WikiLeaks meanwhile has been facing all sorts of challenges after it started posting classified diplomatic cables. Several companies, which allowed WikiLeaks to access donations from contributors, cut off any involvement with the site. The site was offline, sporadically. Assange has less time to repair it because is he busy writing a book which may earn as much as $1.7 million, reports The Times. And by his former employees leaving, it makes it even harder to repair the site.

OpenLeaks is not yet operational. The alpha phase began in January 2011, when it started testing with a small group of media organizations and NGOs. The beta phase is expected to start in the second half of 2011, “when we shall open the door for more initiatives,” the site said.



Ed Silverstein is a TechZone360 contributor. To read more of his articles, please visit his columnist page.

Edited by Jennifer Russell
Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. [Free eNews Subscription]

TechZone360 Contributor

SHARE THIS ARTICLE
Related Articles

Can Science Outsmart Deepfake Deceivers? Klick Labs Proposes an Emerging Solution

By: Alex Passett    3/25/2024

Researchers at Klick Labs were able to identify audio deepfakes from authentic audio recordings via new vocal biomarker technology (alongside AI model…

Read More

Top 5 Best Ways to Integrate Technology for Successful Project-Based Learning

By: Contributing Writer    3/19/2024

Project-based learning, also popularly known as the PBL curriculum, emphasizes using and integrating technology with classroom teaching. This approach…

Read More

How to Protect Your Website From LDAP Injection Attacks

By: Contributing Writer    3/12/2024

Prevent LDAP injection attacks with regular testing, limiting access privileges, sanitizing user input, and applying the proper encoding functions.

Read More

Azure Cost Optimization: 5 Things You Can Do to Save on Azure

By: Contributing Writer    3/7/2024

Azure cost optimization is the process of managing and reducing the overall cost of using Azure. It involves understanding the resources you're using,…

Read More

Massive Meta Apps and Services Outage Impacts Users Worldwide

By: Alex Passett    3/5/2024

Meta's suite of apps and services are experiencing major global outages on Super Tuesday 2024.

Read More