Looks like Anonymous: Breast cancer charity hacked after pulling support from Planned Parenthood.
The Susan G. Komen for the Cure website was hacked early Thursday morning after recently pulling their funding from Planned Parenthood. The move against Planned Parenthood angered many former Komen supporters, and set off a firestorm of criticism.
The sophisticated hack redirected Susan G. Komen website traffic to another website appearing exactly like the original, with a small but significant exception. The original website contained text embedded in a graphic reading “Help us get 26.2 or 13.1 miles closer to a world without breast cancer;” the altered text reads: “Help us run over poor women on our way to the bank.”
The humor, coupled with the technical sophistication and political sensibilities of the hack, all suggest that the notorious, international Internet hacktivist collective known as Anonymous is behind the action. However, at the time of posting this story, no one had claimed responsibility for the clever hack.
The backlash generated by the decision of Susan G. Komen for the Cure to end their funding of Planned Parenthood has been fierce. Many believe the decision was politically motivated to satisfy anti-abortion, right wing extremists intent on destroying Planned Parenthood in their fight against a woman’s right to reproductive freedom.
The decision has been a public relations nightmare for the breast cancer group. Many long time supporters are outraged that a group they believed was non-partisan would succumb to right wing political pressure, and penalize the thousands of women who depend on Planned Parenthood for breast cancer screening, breast health education, and mammogram referrals.
Susan G. Komen for the Cure, formerly known as The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, is a widely known and extremely well funded breast cancer organization located in the US. Wikipedia reports that since its inception in 1982, Komen has invested nearly $2 billion for breast cancer research, education, advocacy, health services and social support programs in the U.S., and through partnerships in more than 50 countries.
On Thursday, Susan G. Komen for the Cure issued a statement denying that political pressure from anti-abortion groups was responsible for their decision to cut off funding to Planned Parenthood. The group claims critics have unfairly characterized their decision to deny funding to Planned Parenthood.
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