Hackers 'Rickroll' Stratfor Subscribers

06 January 2012 | 05:33 PM ET | Matt Liebowitz, SecurityNewsDaily Staff Writer

CREDIT: AntiSec

The hackers behind the year-end attack on the security consulting firm Stratfor have struck again, although this time it appears they are just out for a few laughs.

Anonymous, (working with its Lulz Security partners under the "AntiSec" banner), sent phony emails to members of Stratfor's mailing list asking them to rate the company's "handling of the recent intrusion by those deranged, sexually deviant criminal hacker terrorist masterminds," SC Magazine reported. The emails appear to come from Stratfor's CEO, George Friedman, and are titled "Rate Stratfor's Incident Response."

According to a University of Amsterdam network researcher who posted the message he received, the emails include a link to a list of stolen Stratfor data and email exchanges between Stratfor IT administrators and programmers after they detected suspicious network activity. Another link, in true "lulz" fashion, pranks users by taking them to the YouTube video for Rick Astley's 1980's hit (and Internet meme) "Never Gonna Give You Up."

On Dec. 24, Anonymous stole nearly 900,000 email addresses and more than 68,000 credit card numbers from Stratfor, an Austin, Texas-based firm that counts powerful companies including Chevron, Sony, Lockheed Martin, Goldman Sachs, the United Nations, Google, AIG, HSBC, Bank of America and the US. military as its clients.

Though it's certainly another slap in the face for Stratfor, none of the links are malicious and the emails don't ask users to input any personal information.

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