Why Did The Secret Service Take Over Aaron Swartz's Case Two Days Before He Was Arrested

from the makes-no-sense dept

Mon, Jan 14th 2013 11:45am — Mike Masnick

Many have noted that the US Attorneys had made a new filing on the day that Aaron Swartz committed suicide. While the filing may look like just a standard procedural filing, some are pointing out that it highlights some highly unusual activity in the case. It had to do with Swartz's motion to get some of the evidence blocked from being used in the case, over questions concerning how it was collected. But one of the key things that come out is that, for unexplained reasons, the Secret Service took over the case just two days before Aaron was arrested:

MIT and JSTOR conferred regarding methods to prevent excessive downloading. Timeline at 3-4. On December 26, 2010, there was another episode of excessive downloading, which MIT personnel did not learn of until on or about January 3, 2011. On the morning of January 4, 2011, at approximately 8:00 am, MIT personnel located the netbook being used for the downloads and decided to leave it in place and institute a packet capture of the network traffic to and from the netbook. Timeline at 6. This was accomplished using the laptop of Dave Newman, MIT Senior Network Engineer, which was connected to the netbook and intercepted the communications coming to and from it. Id. Later that day, beginning at 11:00 am, the Secret Service assumed control of the investigation.

As Emptywheel points out, it doesn't make any sense for the Secret Service to be involved in such an issue:

According to the Secret Service, they get involved in investigations with:

Significant economic or community impact

Participation of organized criminal groups involving multiple districts or transnational organizations

Use of schemes involving new technology

Downloading scholarly articles is none of those things.

The same filing shows that MIT allowed all of this to happen despite no warrant, court order, or subpoena -- just handing over all sorts of info.

The disclosure took place only after the MIT General Counsel’s Office approved the disclosure of the information to law enforcement authorities even in the absence of a warrant or court order or subpoena – and at a time when MIT personnel were acting as government agents – and in contravention of MIT policy that such information, which exceeded that found in bank records or telephone toll records, would be disclosed only upon the receipt of lawful court orders or subpoenas, i.e., process complying with the Stored Communications Act, 18 U.S.C. Â§2701 et seq. See Section IV, infra. In a separate email from Halsall to S/A Picket on January 8, 2011, Halsall told Pickett that he “hop[ed] to have the pcap/flows/videos/logs all in by to me Monday, possibly sooner – if you don’t already have a copy of the video or pcap [packet capture], I’ll make sure you get one.” Exhibit 2. No warrant or court order has been provided to counsel which would evidence the government’s having, even post-interception, acquired the contents of the warrantless interceptions by seeking judicial authorization as required.

As more and more people are looking at the details of what went down in arresting and pressuring Aaron, the case just looks worse and worse.

Gov Uscourts Mad 137971 59 0 (PDF)Gov Uscourts Mad 137971 59 0 (Text)

Gov Uscourts Mad 137971 104 0 (PDF)Gov Uscourts Mad 137971 104 0 (Text)

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Filed Under: aaron swartz, mit, secret service

65 Comments

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Ninja (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 9:38am

I tell you, if he took his life as means to shine light upon the madness it may have been brilliant... At least the feds must be crazy trying to find Jesus so He can bring Aaron back. Maybe he produced less damage while alive.

We can all but speculate but hopefully this is going to develop in a way the feds wouldn't want to.
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Arsik Vek (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 11:37am

I'm sure from the distorted view of the prosecution, this fell under "Use of schemes involving new technology"
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Anonymous Coward, 14 Jan 2013 @ 11:52am

Re:
Netbook? Never heard of such a thing. Must be a job for the Secret Service!
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Rikuo (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 11:54am

Re:
Ditto with "Significant economic or community impact". Since he intended to shine light on the fact that PACER is basically ripping of the American public...
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SolkeshNaranek (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 11:58am

So many questions...
I am wondering if we are going to discover that the copyright industry had a hand in this at some point.

In much the same way the Megaupload case was improperly investigated and is being currently managed, so it would seem the Aaron Swartz case was improperly handled.

Either the prosecutor in this case is far out of her area of expertise (technology wise), or she was being "pushed" by an outside interest that needed another talking point about copyright theft and "piracy".

In either case, a bright and creative person has been lost to us. This is a loss that we cannot afford to have happen again. The government cries out for the best and brightest minds, and when they find one this is what happens.

BTW, there are petitions already in place at the "We the People" site which you can sign asking to fire the two DOJ prosecutors involved in this sad mess.
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Rikuo (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 12:01pm

Re: So many questions...
Unless I'm mistaken...the White House doesn't have the legal authority to fire prosecutors, something to do with separation of powers?
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weneedhelp (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 12:02pm

Because
Secret Service is sooooo much scarier. And hell, they must need more money. The ever-reaching hand of authoritay gets larger. They just wanted in on the action. Cant let the FBI, CIA, DOJ, DHS, and every other acronym out there to have all the fun.
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PT (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 12:05pm

Re:
If the Feds are not worrying, they should be. Aaron Swartz could be our own Mohamed Bouazizi.
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ChurchHatesTucker (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 12:09pm

Re: Re:
Significant economic or community impact

... on who?
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Anonymous Coward, 14 Jan 2013 @ 12:12pm

Re: Re:
Who?
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Mason Wheeler (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 12:15pm

Re: Re: Re:
The guy whose very public suicide sparked the beginnings of the Arab Spring.
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shane (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 12:19pm

Government, Banks, IP, Limited Liability
While this falls well short of an assassination, such things have never been out of the question for those who have a vested interest in power.

This is not some weird little accident of politics and personality disorder. This is the result of a consciously constructed system whereby our nominally democratic republic has been turned into a centrally controlled state. Banks create and loosely control money, which we are required by law to use to pay government taxes. This cooperation between private industry and the state gives the banks the upper hand, and undermines all other attempts at democratic rule.

As if that were not enough, IP then allows the large corporations that work with banks to own ideas and concepts. We don't "censor speech" and violate long respected civil rights. Oh no. We protect our "Intellectual Property" rights - rights that have ever been used to silence critique of the government wherever such rights exist.

Finally, we protect the architects of such policies behind a wall of limited liability. They own. They command. But they are not accountable.

This is unconscionable.
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Anonymous Coward, 14 Jan 2013 @ 12:23pm

Re: Re: Re:
The public. It had a significant benefit to the public, which is never good.

/s
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Anonymous Coward, 14 Jan 2013 @ 12:24pm

Re: Re: Re:
Significant economic or community impact

On Publishers(copyright forever)
On Private Prisons(Must have Docile Prisoners don't want real troublemaker)
On Prosecuter Success Tally (More Convictions, easier to get elected to office)
On Smart young people (we need a firm hand to manage and exploit them)
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Arsik Vek (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 12:25pm

Re: Re: So many questions...
Unless I'm mistaken...the White House doesn't have the legal authority to fire prosecutors, something to do with separation of powers?

Federal prosecutors, or US Attorneys, are appointed by the President, and members of the Department of Justice, a component of the Executive Branch.

The President may or may not be able to remove them, I'm not sure what that process looks like, but it's definitelyn ot a seperation of powers issue.
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chris, 14 Jan 2013 @ 12:30pm

Re: Re: So many questions...
The DoJ is an arm of the Executive Branch, of which the POTUS is the head. US Attorney is a patronage position, the holders of which serve at the pleasure of the president.

Please see http://www.presidential-appointments.org/us_attorneys.htm
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Anonymous Coward, 14 Jan 2013 @ 12:38pm

it smacks of MIT trying to cover up it's part in this whole debacle. the statement and investigation they have launched smells of trying to make themselves look squeaky clean, to me. whoever there was responsible for allowing what they did should result in them losing their position.
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Rikuo (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 12:38pm

Re: Re: Re: So many questions...
Okay, thanks. I was seeing this with an Irish perspective, where neither our head of government or head of state can appoint people into the judiciary.
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shane (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 12:39pm

Awesome connection
I didn't even know who this guy was. Thanks for connecting him to this issue for me!
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Anonymous Coward, 14 Jan 2013 @ 12:47pm

Democracy
How do you like Obama now?
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trish, 14 Jan 2013 @ 12:51pm

The luddites, the old guard, have been waging a war on technology. They arrogantly believe that anything new needs to be squashed, especially since technology today is empowering people to have a lot more 'say' in the way their government functions. In certain 'democracies', the freedom trumpet is touted, it seems, to make the old guard feel good about themselves and about false ideals they won't ever abide to. They can make themselves feel better than those 'other countries' who take their citizens' liberties away in the same manner.
It's really incredibly tragic what this man must have been through. To know that you are the powerless victim of the relentless and over-reaching oppression of a monolith whose reason for existence is supposed to be to protect you and your rights.
Yes, you have recourse and are not really powerless... but the judge is in the pocket of the prosecutor as mentioned above (they probably play golf on weekends together). Your lawyer costs a fortune and you have no financial backing (billions of tax-payer dollars are sitting on the other side of the table, though.) And the charges against you are a bunch of BS, specifically BS which is all about the government trying to get its citizenry to shut their eyes, mouths and ears about what is going on around them.
This is the new tyranny. It's human nature to want power and control, and the types of people who go after power are exactly the ones who like wielding it, and they don't want to lose that power.
But... it's hard to exert control and power over a people who are too educated, too informed, and too sure of their own rights. As it's going, how are Americans to become anything but cowards in the face of their own government, or be driven to madness and suicide.
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Anonymous Coward, 14 Jan 2013 @ 12:52pm

Re: So many questions...
Fired?
Perhaps executed? It's not like the president doesn't have the authority. Right?
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Michael Becker (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 12:57pm

Re: Re: Re: So many questions...
I learned this from The West Wing. Honestly, I learned a lot from that show.
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Anonymous Coward, 14 Jan 2013 @ 12:58pm

The way this is stacking up can also appear to represent "no matter what you do, they will get you" - such that some won't even bother to work within the system. What then?

Tear it down becomes the only answer.
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Richard (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 1:05pm

Re: Re: Re: Re:
Or, in popular culture terms:

" If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you could possibly imagine..."
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JEDIDIAH, 14 Jan 2013 @ 1:08pm

Re: So many questions...
A prosecutor is a lawyer for the state, not a judge.

Judges are a separate branch of the government. Although they are appointed by POTUS.
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Anonymous Coward, 14 Jan 2013 @ 1:10pm

It's the Law!
The president can kill whomever he wants, even American citizens, for whatever secret reasons he chooses. It's the law!

I was discounting the idea, but with the Secret Service in charge of the case, who really knows?
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Anonymous Coward, 14 Jan 2013 @ 1:23pm

The same filing shows that MIT allowed all of this to happen despite no warrant, court order, or subpoena -- just handing over all sorts of info.

Why would MIT be hostile toward law enforcement? If I was videotaping a parade and law enforcement asked to see the tape, as a crime was committed nearby at the time I was filming; I'd give it to them. Why the hell not?
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SolkeshNaranek (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 1:27pm

Re: Re: So many questions...
A simple rerouting of a drone perhaps?
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SolkeshNaranek (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 1:29pm

Re: Re: So many questions...
Not sure where you are going with this? I didn't see where anyone confused a prosecutor with a judge.
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weneedhelp (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 1:41pm

Re: Re: Re: Re:
American public: [Crickets]

I read today about the Russian public getting 20,000 protestors to protest the Russian governments decision to make it illegal for American citizens to adopt Russian children.

It is a sad day when Russia looks more like America than Amerika does.
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weneedhelp (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 1:43pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:
Sad indeed:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/13/russia-adoption-ban-thousands-march_n_2468647.html
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Information Warfare, 14 Jan 2013 @ 1:49pm

They...
breitbarted his ass.. Nothing to see here.. Move along dear sheepel..
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Anonymous Coward, 14 Jan 2013 @ 1:52pm

Re: Re: Re: So many questions...
Rikuo was confused about which branch of the government a federal prosecutor belonged to, believing they were part of the judiciary. Jedidiah was responding to that confusion.
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ChrisB (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 1:57pm

Re: Democracy
I'm convinced a president's only role is to stop things from getting worse. He is one man against a state of millions of government employees, millions of contractors and lobbyists, and billions in spending. A strong president can stand up to (or distract) the relentless corrupting affect of that much power and money in one place. A weak president cannot stop the momentum. I love listening to Obama speak, but I think he has no control at all.
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Anonymous Coward, 14 Jan 2013 @ 2:03pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: So many questions...
Wow. I learned it in High School Poli-Sci. That's a sad statement about the effectiveness of our public educational system when adults have to learn High School level Poli-Sci from a TV show.
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Anonymous Coward, 14 Jan 2013 @ 2:08pm

in reading through the computer fraud and abuse act, 18 USC, section 1030, the statute gives the authority to investigate certain "crimes" under the state to the secret service. specifically, section 1030(d). unclear why congress wanted the secret service involved, but it is in statute.
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Jay, 14 Jan 2013 @ 2:26pm

Re: They...
LOL...yeah, cause Andrew Breitbart's death was so shocking.

Overweight cocaine abusers never have heart attacks! Wake up sheeple!
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Rikuo (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 2:31pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: So many questions...
Yeah, I was being a bit simplistic in my thinking. I thought everyone who's involved in the court system belongs to the same branch of government.
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jim, 14 Jan 2013 @ 2:31pm

Re: Government, Banks, IP, Limited Liability
FTR It's called fascism.
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Philip Cohen, 14 Jan 2013 @ 2:48pm

Wire fraud?
�Wire fraud�? Did someone mention "wire fraud"? The greatest knowing criminal facilitator of literally massive wire fraud on consumers the world over is eBay Inc, and the DoJ appears to be totally uninterested in doing anything about that major fraud activity � http://bit.ly/N1nTlc

It must have something to do with the ratio of the size of the perpetrator to the victim: large corporation perpetrator, small victim(s): ignore; small perpetrator, large corporation victim: 30 years � After all, the USSC says, corporations are people�LOL
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sswaner, 14 Jan 2013 @ 2:52pm

Re: Re: Re: So many questions...
The President can remove them. G. W. Bush fired a whole bunch of them a few years ago, causing a lot of controversy.
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Information Warfare, 14 Jan 2013 @ 3:26pm

Re: Re: They...
And the coroner too I suppose..
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mudlock (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 3:56pm

I blame Chris Dodd. No, seriously.
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Anonymous Coward, 14 Jan 2013 @ 4:28pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: So many questions...
In Europe there is sometimes a partial conflation of judges, investigators and prosecutors. Separation of powers is most fully developed in the U.S.
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Anonymous Coward, 14 Jan 2013 @ 4:29pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: So many questions...
I learn a lot of things from the net.
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That Anonymous Coward (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 5:01pm

Re:
Because its not like cops have ever demanded video of a crime just to be able to erase their wrongdoing.
There is a system in place, formal requests, Judges are supposed to be involved. To just hand over all sorts of documents on a whim violates the ideals of fair and equal justice.
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That Anonymous Coward (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 5:03pm

Re:
I blame the large pool of lawyers appointed to the DoJ who had been working for the copyright industry for years.
I blame judges who before they were appointed were lobbyists trying to change copyright law to benefit corporations at the expense of the public yet again.
I blame a system that no longer raises any concerns when people who are obviously biased are placed in top positions and given the authority to run wild.
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DCX2, 14 Jan 2013 @ 7:51pm

Re: Democracy
Do you really think it would have been any different Romney/McCain/Bush/Kerry/Gore/Clinton/Dole/Bush/Reagan/etc?
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DCX2, 14 Jan 2013 @ 8:00pm

Re:
As a person video taping a parade, you're a private person, you own the copyright on everything that happened, etc.

However, MIT is more like a service provider. Service providers have a duty to protect those who they are providing the service to; after all, what good is the 4th amendment if the phone companies just roll over and let the government install wiretaps directly into the system? Specifically, MIT has a policy that requires a subpoena or warrant before releasing personal information. http://tech.mit.edu/V132/N46/swartz.html
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Anonymous Coward, 14 Jan 2013 @ 8:29pm

Re: Because
Cns you believe it? This is the organization that the President of the USA relies on for protection! It is horribly reminiscent of the State Security Committee in the Soviet Union (KGB) who had everyone under their thumb including the Communist Party elite.
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Anonymous Coward, 14 Jan 2013 @ 9:05pm

Re:
You could, sure, but you are under no legal obligation to do so unless the camera, itself, was used in the commission of a crime. You want my property? Get a warrant.
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BentFranklin (profile), 14 Jan 2013 @ 9:07pm

Re:
I trust Hal Abelson to write an honest report.
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V.N.Raju, 15 Jan 2013 @ 1:03am

I wonder..
With all these sinister things associated with the case,
was Aaron's death really a suicide...? I wonder ...
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commenter8 (profile), 15 Jan 2013 @ 3:09am

White House Petitions
Prosecutors turned down Reddit co-founder Aaron Swartz's request for plea deal over MIT hacking case TWO DAYS before his suicide

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2262137/Aaron-Swartz-Reddit-founder-request-plea- deal-turned-Massachusetts-prosecutor.html

Lawyer says he warned prosecutors that Reddit co-founder Aaron Swartz was suicidal

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2262518/Lawyer-says-warned-prosecutors-Reddit-fo under-Aaron-Swartz-suicidal.html

White House petition to fire US Attprney Carmen Ortiz for her misconduct in this case

https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/remove-united-states-district-attorney-carmen-orti z-office-overreach-case-aaron-swartz/RQNrG1Ck

The petition to fire US Attorney Carmen Ortiz has already exceeded the 25,000 signatures needed to get a response from the White House.

Here's a new petition to fire Assistant US Attorney Steve Heymann:

http://wh.gov/Ex1n

White House petition to limit copyrights to a maximum of 10 years

https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/shorten-excessive-copyright-terms/XMc72zjc
[ link to this | view in thread ]
tim_laughs (profile), 15 Jan 2013 @ 5:00am

Re: Re: So many questions...
Check out this wiki...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dismissal_of_U.S._attorneys_controversy
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quawonk, 15 Jan 2013 @ 5:38am

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Witch_hunt#Metaphorical_usage
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george milton, 15 Jan 2013 @ 6:11am

spaceballs
taglines http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094012/taglines

I'm not the only one thinking it.
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G Thompson (profile), 15 Jan 2013 @ 7:27am

Is it Just me or has America gone fucking crazy?
Westboro Baptist Church Threatens To Picket Aaron Swartz's Funeral

Though luckily Anonymous is planning to do what any normal person would after reading the above tripe from this Abrahamic offshoot Cult-like organisation. STOP THEM!

They are calling it Operation #opAngel and other than the part about targeting the DoJ (which is just posturing and silly) EVERYONE should be involved!

Anonymous original News Release --> http://pastebin.com/PKm921c9
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nasch (profile), 15 Jan 2013 @ 9:10am

Re: Re: Because
This is the organization that the President of the USA relies on for protection!

Though they seemed to be pretty far afield on this one, they do have many duties other than protection.
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none, 16 Jan 2013 @ 3:19am

MIT is a place where a lot of people with secret, top-secret and other classifications work. No classified work is done on campus (Lincoln Labs is for that) but people who work at Lincoln Labs and other places with classification roam freely on campus.

Or, put another way, anybody who breaks into a network closet, for whatever reason, is going to be investigated by the Secret Service.

Hindsight (being twenty-twenty and all) shows that the reason for breach of a network closet being utterly benign (in fact, laudable) doesn't obviate the need for the Secret Service (who is tasked under the Patriot Act with investigating cybercrimes) to make certain that real shenanigans aren't underway.

This does not excuse the aggressive prosecution by the Justice Department: that's an entirely separate issue.
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Freeman1776, 16 Jan 2013 @ 6:04am

Assassination, business as usual
The government has the power to gag people who threaten to expose government secrets, but since John Kennedy's assassination, it has become common practice to gag people thorough "government assisted suicide".

So many whistle blowers and people who threaten to blow the whistle have met with accidents, suicides, and disappearances, that the numbers are mounting into the thousands. Surely by now, people are starting to catch on.

Aaron Swartz is but one of the latest to fall victim to the government's "gag" method.
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NeedNoStinkingUserName (profile), 17 Jan 2013 @ 2:01am

Re: So many questions...
I think you'll find the outside interest doesn't deal with the prosecutor. The outsider has influence at a far higher level and instructions come down to the lower pay grades from the very top of the food chain. The entire federal govt and both political parties are totally corrupted and beholden to the banks and major corps. . and the message to the 99% is "fuck with us and see what happens!! This sucker's gunna blow and we're getting out with ours . . and by "ours" we mean "yours" !!"

As to Kim Dotcom / Megaupload he may be lucky and avoid a usa based court case. The illegality carried out by the incompetant NZ police and the clowns at GCSB,would be humourous if it wasn't so serious. Performing like obedient poodles at the F.I.B.'s urging the whole conspiracy - because lets not forget, thats what it is - has come badly unstuck in the court of Justice Winkelman, who has shown herself to be no pushover and has copped no crap from "law" enforcement. The extradition case may well flounder on the bench of the good Judge.
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shava23 (profile), 7 Feb 2013 @ 11:48pm

Perhaps a little better research is called for?
A simple web search comes up with this from the Secret Service recruiting site's history "about" page:

http://www.secretservice.gov/join/who_history.shtml

In 2001, the USA PATRIOT Act mandated the Secret Service to establish a nationwide network of Electronic Crimes Task Forces (ECTFs), a network bringing together not only federal, state and local law enforcement, but also prosecutors, private industry and academia aimed at combating technology based crimes. The common purpose is the prevention, detection, mitigation and aggressive investigation of attacks on the nation's financial and critical infrastructures.

Effective March 1, 2003, the Secret Service was transferred from the Department of the Treasury to the newly established Department of Homeland Security. In 2009, the Secret Service made nearly 2,866 criminal arrests for counterfeiting, cyber investigations and other financial crimes, 98% of which resulted in convictions, and removed more than $182 million in counterfeit U.S. currency from circulation.

Today, the Secret Service continues to protect our nation�s leaders, visiting world leaders and the integrity of the nation�s financial systems. With a rich tradition of service to the nation and its people, the agency continues to evolve, adding a variety of duties to our original charter.

(my emphasis)

Even before PATRIOT, the Secret Service was investigating crimes where there were questions of Social Security numbers being used for fraud and a wide variety of other issues beyond what you list. Your list is abbreviated and I have no idea where you got it but it's hearsay quality. Plugging in Secret Service investigatory powers into Google blew it to pieces in fifteen seconds.

Why fan the flames falsely? There's so much valid to do here. You are going to discredit good work.

I was Aaron's friend. I appeared on a panel on privacy with him at the MIT Museum on privacy. I was in the Berkman blog group with him. Various stuff. Before I knew him personally I knew him as this genius kid on email lists and such since he was a teenager.

I mourn him terribly. The day of his funeral I and some others were in front of the Boston Federal Courthouse holding vigil.

But there's no reason for this kind of poorly researched thing -- it does no good in the community in our out of hacktivism. Be rigorous and non-violent, if you want to honor what Aaron did, be impeccable.

I'd post the same on Empty Wheel, but they seem to have closed comments over there.

Le Sigh.
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JonJon, 5 Jan 2015 @ 6:16am

Re:
Aaron's death unfortunately will remain a big loss for our civilization progress towards freedom of information. While we know the secret service took over this case, and we know the type of things the secret services are trained to do (eliminate people among other things), it astonishes me that people take it for granted that Aaron actually chose to take his own life.

An activist that refuses a plea bargain and who gets unjustly prosecuted becomes an instant hero... Think Nelson Mandela, Tim deChristopher etc... Their cause takes a new dimension and lives stronger so long as they don't take their own life. The government was aware that when Aaron rejected the plea bargain, they had an issue. A very serious one indeed. The only choice remaining was to make him look like a weak and depressed young hacker who couldn't take responsibility for his acts of "vandalism" and who took his own life. This is how mainstream media basically portrayed him.

Now, outside of the geek-activist world, no one remembers him or even knows who he was. If they do, they just think... Oh that smart-ass who thought he could change the world by act of digital vandalism but who didn't know stealing is stealing? Sad but someone as courageous as Aaron needs to step up to the plate despite the risks involved... who's willing to do it? Very very few people. If you do, make sure you publicly declare on Fb, Twitter, and your blog that you are not going to commit suicide. May not help obviously if you die in an accident...

Information secrecy is highly valued by the powers that be, so no activist should underestimate this fact and take the huge risk of acting solo like Aaron did. A group is much harder to attack that one key figure. Good luck people... I for myself, prefer to let civilization shape itself one person at a time. It's a long process compared to hacktivism, but at least it will cost no lives (yes, call me a coward, I'm no Aaron Swartz).
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