London Riots 2011: Protesters Use BlackBerry Messenger; Hackers Back Them

A masked man walks past a burning car outside a Carhartt store in Hackney, Aug. 8, 2011, in London.

The riots raging across north London have been fueled, in part, by the use of BlackBerry Messenger. When BlackBerry's parent company promised to cooperate with British police, its Inside BlackBerry blog was promptly hacked by protesters.

Credit for the hacking was claimed by a group that calls itself TeaMp0isoN. It has been linked to other shadowy groups, such as Lulz Security and Anonymous, which have taken credit for breaking into the websites of police departments, the U.S. Senate, the CIA, Sony's PlayStation network and Citibank.

As the London riots spread, BlackBerry's Canadian parent company, Research In Motion, or RIM, put up this blog post:

"We feel for those impacted by this weekend's riots in London. We have engaged with the authorities to assist in any way we can. As in all markets around the world Where BlackBerry is available, we cooperate with local telecommunications operators, law enforcement and regulatory officials."

This morning a reply appeared on the BlackBerry blog:

"Dear Rim; You Will _NOT_ assist the UK Police because if u do innocent members of the public who were at the wrong place at the wrong time and owned a blackberry will get charged for no reason at all," it said. "The Police are looking to arrest as many people as possible to save themselves from embarrassment. ... If you do assist the police by giving them chat logs, gps locations, customer information & access to peoples BlackBerryMessengers you will regret it. ..."
London Riot Spread to Multiple Cities Watch Video
British PM Condemns Riots: 'Sickening' Watch Video
April 12, 1981: Brixton Riots Watch Video

The rioting was sparked by the shooting death of 29-year-old Mark Duggan, in the Tottenham section of North London, last Thursday. Police said Duggan shot at them first. Protesters demonstrated on Saturday, and the march soon turned violent. It has spread to the British cities of Birmingham, Bristol and Liverpool.

U.K. police say protesters have been using BlackBerry Messenger -- the popular smartphone text-messaging service -- to organize, while authorities conceded they were monitoring Facebook and Twitter. One message, according to London's Guardian newspaper, read:

"Everyone from all sides of London meet up at the heart of London (central) OXFORD CIRCUS!!, Bare SHOPS are gonna get smashed up so come get some (free stuff!!!) f**k the feds we will send them back with OUR riot! >: O"

Authorities on both sides of the Atlantic have struggled to keep up with the social networking tools used by activists. While BlackBerry has struggled against competition from Apple's iPhone and Google's Android in the United States, it is by far the leading smartphone brand in the U.K.

And the hackers are hard to stop. Last month, police arrested a 19-year-old in Scotland's remote Shetland Islands, calling him the chief spokesman for Lulz Security, but "hacktivism" still continues unabated.

"Given the ease and anonymity with which these attacks can be conducted and the jurisdiction issues, it is likely that the bad guys will remain in the driver's seat for the foreseeable future," said John D'Arcy, an assistant professor of information technology management at the University of Notre Dame.

London Riots Move North, Strike Birmingham

Riots and looting in the United Kingdom have spread to Birmingham, about 120 miles north-west of the city of London. On Monday night, shop windows in the center of the city were smashed and the new Bullring shopping complex was attacked.

 

In what police and the British media are calling a "copycat riot," gangs of masked youth set fire to buildings and cars in the northern city. Police have closed the Birmingham New Street railway station, the city's main train station. Additionally, the English national cricket team was confined to their hotel when violence broke out around them.

The team is scheduled to play India in Birmingham on Wednesday, and is staying at a hotel in the center of the city.

"Just seen the rioters in Birmingham fleeing down the main street followed by a load of police in the full get up. What's going on?" tweeted English bowler Tim Bresnan.

The London Riots: Attacked From Within

 

I am disgusted, appalled, heartbroken and furious about the destruction, devastation and demolition which has taken place on the streets of London over the last few days. Fortunately, the ‘London Riots’ have absolutely nothing to do with Casa de Campo, La Romana or the Dominican Republic, however as an English person and journalist living in the Dominican Republic, I feel compelled to share with you the sad story of what has happened and is still happening in the UK. 

The sorry story of the ‘London Riots’ has been largely un-told in the Dominican press and so for those of you who have no idea what I’m talking about and what is going on in London, here it is: essentially wide-scale riots and looting have broken out across London as well as in various other cities across the UK, with ‘youths’ setting fire to cars, buses and local businesses, looting – breaking into shops and stealing whatever they can grab, as well as violence against the police – throwing of rocks, fireworks and other objects.

2011 London riots august

About 15 hours ago or so I was listening to Obama’s voice over the internet…online radio…

 I was doing something else, nothing important really… I had returned from Japan a few days before, but somehow this time jetlag had hit me pretty hard despite having played such energetic shows over there…

Sometimes in the past I felt nothing, but this time it was like that scene in Fight Club in which Edward Norton lays on the couch with his remote control, flicking through TV channels, suffering from insomnia. The only difference was that I had got rid of my TVset almost 10 years ago. I had three totally different books in front of me, couldn’t focus at all.

But when Obama came on, I suddenly felt a shot of adrenaline, I woke up. He was talking about how “Standard & Poor’s doubted our political system’s ability to act” – the US had been downgraded to an AA+ level. The debt level was increased, the problems far from solved. The information wasn’t what alerted me, it was the tone of his voice.

When Obama got elected, he convinced a whole generation just by speaking to them in a certain way, that democracy and capitalism will work out for everybody. We CAN change and improve things. Even though I come from a very different political standpoint and I am very aware of the power of the system, when it comes to the system changing individuals who tried to change it, I heard an honesty in this man’s voice which was rare amongst politicians. But suddenly what seemed to have changed mostly for me was his voice. It was the voice of a man who failed badly but out of respect for his listeners was performing a duty.  The job of being President.

We live in a society which has no place for optimism anymore. It’s gone. Nobody wants to take the risk and predict a future,  mainly because everybody feels powerless. Nobody even wants to take the responsibility and take matters into their own hands.

It’s stagnant. Establishments are regarded as fools. It is a constant battle between the ‘wisdom of the crowd’ and the ‘mob mentality’.

So while I was starting to feel like I was actually back in Berlin and awake, I looked outside the window, down on the street in which Atari Teenage Riot had played the peace demonstration on May 1st 1999. Thousands of people protested against Germany’s first involvement in an attack war since World War II. I remembered when I was on the microphone during a song and saw how the police beat into the, at that point, peaceful crowd. Of course the situation escalated, it’s all on film. Even though the images have become iconic and still give viewers the chills, but in my opinon they also tell a story of failure…

There is a long tradition in Berlin that the labor day, the 1st May ends in violence. In 1999 it was supposed to be different. The intent was to get across how serious people treat this issue of Germany sending their soldiers to war. The police failed, because they didn’t break up the crowd and things got out of hand. We all failed to get the real message across. The media had their images of violence, and basically a decade later, it seems perfectly ‘normal’ for German politicians to send troops into other countries.

Violence is always the result of people failing. Failing to communicate, failing to take responsibilities, failing to solve problems. Always.

Now the street in Berlin, Kreuzberg looks peaceful and quiet. Like it did a day before May 1st 1999 and the day after.

I turned back to my computer. The different news feeds were sending update after update. “Freddie Mac reports 2nd quarter loss, asks for $1.5B in federal aid”, “Bank of America now down -20.31%”, “Asia stocks fall after U.S. #stocks dive”, “Losses accelerating at Australian stock market; S&P/ASX200 index off 5%”

First Fatality as London Riots Spread Across Britain

“Many of us have worked in this community for many years and we know the loving, generous and openhearted people with whom we share our daily lives are not the rioters who have destroyed so much.”

He added: “What has happened will not conquer the hope which is set before us. We will continue to share that hope with our neighbors and friends as we move to rebuild in Tottenham.”

(Reuters/Jon Boyle)

A police officer stands guard as firefighters work to extinguish the flames of a blazing store in Woolwich, southeast London, August 9, 2011. Rioting and looting spread across and beyond London on Monday as hooded youths set fire to cars and buildings, smashed shop windows and hurled bottles and stones at police in a third night of violence in Britain's worst unrest in decades.

 

Meanwhile Tottenham MP David Lammy urged people to "get behind" the police in policing the community to help people feel safe. He said: "It's certainly my job to ensure that the Independent Police Complaints Commission move as quickly as they can to establish what happened to Mark Duggan last Thursday.

"I have raised questions about why things were allowed to escalate as quickly as they did over so many hours without proper intervention, I think, by the police."

(Reuters/Toby Melville)

Cars burn on a street in Ealing, London August 9, 2011. Looting by groups of hooded youths spread to Ealing in west London and Camden in the north of the British capital late on Monday, the third night of violence which police have blamed on criminal thugs.

 

 Mark Duggan was killed by police last Thursday after a shoot-out when his taxi was stopped by officers. A vigil held by his family on Saturday turned violent and sparked the original riots in Tottenham, north London.

However, since then the riots have become much more widespread and commentators are now saying the riots taking place across Britain are not directly related to Duggan’s killing, but stems from a greater feeling of unrest in the nation.

(Reuters/Stefan Wermuth)

Police officers stand near a burnt out shop in Clapham Junction, in south London August 9, 2011. British Prime Minister David Cameron said he would recall parliament from its summer recess for a day on Thursday after rioting swept through London for three consecutive nights.

 

Reverend Nims Obunge, pastor of the local Freedom's Ark Church, who has been working with Duggan's relatives, said: "It's important that we allow the IPCC to tell us where this investigation's at. It's important we allow them to communicate whatever their findings are with the family.

"It's important that we don't run off with a report, but we make sure that whatever is reported is handled in an accurate and in a way that we can heal ourselves as a community and look for the way forward.
"Justice is important, but we don't know what justice is totally yet."

(Reuters/Stefan Wermuth)

A woman poses for a photograph as volunteers wait to clear-up after overnight disturbances in Clapham Junction, in south London August 9, 2011. British Prime Minister David Cameron said he would recall parliament from its summer recess for a day on Thursday after rioting swept through London for three consecutive nights.

Celebrities React To London Riots

"Sick to my stomach. Love my home. Thank you for the updates. I won't be sleeping. News on. Keep safe, people." That's what Sophie Ellis-Bextor wrote on Twitter about the savage riots going on in London. Protests in Tottenham over a police shooting erupted into a full-blown riot over several nights.

Man shot during London riots dies

Police were caught off guard and emergency services stretched by the rapidly expanding violence that has reportedly been organised on social networks including Twitter and Blackberry messenger.

Australians tell of violence

An Australian in Hackney, Damian Cavanagh, said police were being careful to avoid clashing with rioters.

"At one stage the front line was 15 or 20 officers (who) backed away from one individual who was advancing on them," the 30-year-old said.

"I think they are aware how quickly actions by them could inflame the situation."

Australian journalist James Scurry said parts of the city were "like a war zone".

"There were cars reversing along a major highway. They were trying to escape the violence," he said.

"These types of things just don't happen here in London."

Clapham north resident Lucy Antoniou told the Herald Sun there was looting down her street.

"Our big department store, Debenhams, in Clapham Junction, has been completely trashed and looters have taken everything," she said.

Ms Antonious said many affected areas were without police as law enforcement was stretched thin over the city.

The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is warning the more than 50,000 Australians in London to avoid all demonstrations and protests.

Australians are also being cautioned against travelling to London and other riot-torn cities.

A travel advisory issued by the Federal Government's Smartraveller website this afternoon has warned of unpredictable violence, rioting and fires throughout the UK.

How it began

The bulk of the violence began on Saturday in Tottenham, north London, after 29-year old local man Mark Duggan was fatally shot by police on Thursday.

Mr Duggan's death stirred old animosities and racial tensions which prompted riots in the 1980s.

Tottenham was the scene of severe rioting on the Broadwater Farm housing estate in 1985 when police constable Keith Blakelock was hacked to death.

The latest riots did not seem to be fuelled by a need for justice or revenge.

"All they want is a free TV or a new pair of running shoes. They're just taking whatever they fancy. These people are evil," one East London witness said.

As the unrest spread, some pointed to rising social tensions in Britain as the Government slashes STG80 billion ($A129.0 billion) from public spending by 2015 to reduce the huge deficit, swollen after the country spent billions bailing out its foundering banks.

Police acknowledged that major new bouts of violence had flared in at least five locations, badly stretching their resources.

"The violence we have seen is simply inexcusable. Ordinary people have had their lives turned upside down by this mindless thuggery," police commander Christine Jones said.

The riots have also raised concerns about about security and policing ahead of next year's London Olympics.

Britain's Home Secretary Theresa May, who cut short her holiday to return to London, condemned the riots as "sheer criminality" and vowed that the perpetrators would face justice.

"The violence we've seen, the looting we've seen, the thuggery we've seen -this is sheer criminality," she said.

"These people will be brought to justice, they will be made to face the consequences of their actions and I call on all members of local communities to work with the police constructively to help the police to bring these criminals to justice.

"Once again, I would like to pay tribute to the bravery of the police officers who put themselves in harm's way to protect the public, their property and local businesses."

Prime Minister Julia Gillard today condemned the rioters and said Australia wished its UK friends well and hoped the situation was brought under control as soon as possible.

"I, like many other Australians, have been very, very disturbed to see the images coming out of London," Ms Gillard said in Canberra.