E-mails Reveal Plot Against Chamber Foes

A cache of stolen e-mails have revealed plans to mount a counterintelligence operation against groups critical of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber has denied any knowledge or participation in the plans, the Washington Post reports.

The e-mails came to light when a group of hackers known as Anonymous hit the computers of a California security firm, HBGary Federal. The group then dumped thousands of internal e-mails on to the web, the Post said.

Included were plans to mount a campaign against critics of Bank of America and the Chamber that included circulating fake documents and cyber-attacks. Some of the material was outlined for a law and lobby shop that works for the Chamber, Hunton & Williams, the Post said.

One focus of the plan was ChamberWatch, a union supported group critical of the Chamber and its members. The e-mails include personal information about those working for ChamberWatch and ideas for targeting them such as creating “fake insider personas” on social media, the Post said.