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Anonymous hacks Chile’s government in support of student protests

Protesters are fighting for free college tuition.

 

Patrick Howell O'Neill

Tech

Posted on May 18, 2015   Updated on May 28, 2021, 7:44 pm CDT

As student protests against the Chilean government’s education policy turned deadly last week, the hacktivist collective Anonymous stepped into the conflict.

Hackers claiming an affiliation with Anonymous broke into Chile’s National Municipal Information System website and leaked official login credentials in support of the protesters, HackRead reports. The leaked data includes names, email addresses, telephone numbers, and password hashes.

The hashtags #OpChile and #Marchaestudiantil are being used to spread word about the action.

Two Chilean student protesters died last week in nationwide protests against the government’s education policy and, increasingly, police brutality in the country. Police say the shooter has been arrested. Some university professors have reportedly joined the protests.

The protesters want free college tuition for poor students as well as performance reviews for professors.

The controversy over the state of Chilean education extends back nearly a decade. The issues have for years been a repeat catalyst for nationwide protests and political upheaval in the South American country.

H/T HackRead | Photo via Wikipedia (CC BY SA 2.0)

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*First Published: May 18, 2015, 11:37 am CDT