Top-Secret Pentagon Documents , Were Leaked to Settle Online Argument, Analysts Suggest .
Last week, documents showing estimated casualties for both Ukraine and Russia began circulating on social media platforms. At the same time, altered versions of the documents began to circulate, showing understated Russian casualties and overstated Ukrainian casualties.
'The Guardian' reports that the leaked documents from the Pentagon appear to have been initially shared on the chat platform Discord.
'The Guardian' reports that the leaked documents from the Pentagon appear to have been initially shared on the chat platform Discord.
According to open-source intelligence analysts, the information was leaked in an effort to win an argument regarding the war in Ukraine.
According to open-source intelligence analysts, the information was leaked in an effort to win an argument regarding the war in Ukraine.
After a brief spat with another person on the server about Minecraft Maps and the war in Ukraine, one of the Discord users replied: ‘Here, have some leaked documents’ – attaching 10 documents about Ukraine, some of which bore the ‘top secret’ markings, Aric Toler, analyst at the investigative research group Bellingcat, via 'The Guardian'.
'The Guardian' reports that the documents may have been posted as early as mid-January on a Discord server named "Thug Shaker Central.".
Posts and channel listings show that the server’s users were interested in video games, music, Orthodox Christianity, and fandom for the popular YouTuber ‘Oxide.’, Aric Toler, analyst at the investigative research group Bellingcat, via 'The Guardian'.
This server was not especially geopolitical in nature, although its users had a staunchly Conservative stance on several issues, members told Bellingcat.
Racial slurs and racist memes were shared widely, Aric Toler, analyst at the investigative research group Bellingcat, via 'The Guardian'.
'The Guardian' reports that intelligence agencies have long been monitoring gaming communities.
In 2013, NSA contractor Edward Snowden leaked a cache of documents revealing the agency's active surveillance on Xbox live, Microsoft's console chat program.
In 2013, NSA contractor Edward Snowden leaked a cache of documents revealing the agency's active surveillance on Xbox live, Microsoft's console chat program
