By: Earnest Jones | 03-08-2017 | News
Photo credit: Gage Skidmore / Flickr

Vault 7 Release: WikiLeaks Publishes Massive Trove of CIA Spying Files

WikiLeaks has finally unleashed the Vault 7 release. The whistle-blowing organization has published a huge trove of what appears to be a collection of CIA spying secrets. The founder of WikiLeaks has said that the files are the most comprehensive release of US spying files that have ever been made public, adding that there are 8,761 documents that account for the entire hacking capacity of the CIA. The trove that has been unveiled by WikiLeaks is just a tip of the iceberg since its just the first of a series of “Vault 7” leaks.

The files already constitute far more pages than the Snowden files that exposed the vast hacking power of NSA and other agencies such as CIA.

By publishing the documents, WikiLeaks made sure that the CIA had lost control of its arsenal. This included an array of software and exploits that if real, they could allow unparalleled control of computers around the globe. This includes software that could aid the agency to take control of the most popular products that are used today.

WikiLeaks elaborated on “Year Zero” in its release by saying that it constitutes of direction and scope of the CIA’s global covert hacking program. The program expounds on the malware arsenal and dozens of “zero days” weaponized exploits against a wide range of U.S. and European company products such as Apple’s iPhone, Google’s Android and Microsoft’s Windows and even Samsung TV’s which are turned into covert microphones.

WikiLeaks also said that the public files don’t include the cyber weapons themselves, adding that it will refrain from distributing armed software until a consensus emerges on the technical and political nature of the CIA’s program and how such weapons should be analyzed, disarmed and published.

The whistle-blowing organization has said that the source of the files intended for them to start a conversation about whether the CIA has gained excessive power. The source made a statement to WikiLeaks detailing policy questions that they say need to be urgently debated in public, including whether the CIA hacking capabilities exceed its mandated powers and the problem of public oversight of the agency. The source intends to spark a public debate on security, use, proliferation, creation and the democratic use of cyber weapons.

Share this article
Thoughts on the above story? Comment below!
0 comment/s
What do you think about this article?
Name
Comment *
Image

Recent News

Popular Stories