Hacking group Anonymous take control of Trump-supporting white supremacist website The Daily Stormer after horrific Charlottesville violence
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Web hackers Anonymous have taken control of a white supremacist website which supports Donald Trump and vilifies Jewish people.
The Daily Stormer is known as a neo-Nazi site which was leading a rally in Charlottesville in Virginia where one woman was killed by a driver who rammed his car into a crowd.
Anti-racism protesters had turned out in force as the white supremacists marched through the street shouting "Hail Trump" and making Nazi salutes.
After the incident, Anonymous took control of the website, and said it will be shut down in 24 hours, before personal data will then be released.
Posting on the site, Anonymous said: "This site is now under the control of Anonymous.
(Image: Daily Stormer)
(Image: Rex Features)
"We have taken this site in the name of Heather Heyer, a victim of white supremacist terrorism."
Ms Heyer, 32, was killed at a Charlottesville far-right rally, and was a civil rights activist.
The legal assistant, from Virginia, died when a car rammed into a group of protesters, with 19 others injured.
James Alex Fields Jr, 20, from Ohio, has been charged with her murder.
Andrew Anglin, the man behind the vile Daily Stormer website, wrote about her death on August 13, calling Ms Heyer a "fat, childless 32-year-old sl*t."
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(Image: Rex Features)
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In the poisonous rant, he said: "Despite feigned outrage by the media, most people are glad she is dead, as she is the definition of uselessness.
"A 32-year-old woman without children is a burden on society and has no value."
He went on to say: "Having no children at that age, it can be assumed that she had multiple abortions and thus herself was a child murderer.
"Whatever you think of the driver, it is clear that his actions saved us a lot of money. The costs of the food alone to sustain a woman of this size for another 49 years would be astronomical."
Anonymous has claimed that the hack had been in the pipeline for a while, but that the events in Charlottesville, and more specifically Ms Heyer's death, prompted them to take immediate action.
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Their message went on to read: "For too long, the Daily Stormer and Andrew Anglin have spewed their putrid hate on this site. That will not be happening anymore.
"We have all of the details on the servers and will be releasing the data when we feel the time is right.
"We have also gathered locational data on Anglin himself and are sending our allies in Lagos to pay him a visit in person.
"This evil cannot be allowed to stand.
"It took a united force of elite hackers from around the world to breach the systems and the firewall.
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"We have had the Daily Stormer in our sights for months now.
"The events of Charlottesville alerted us to the need for immediate action. We want you Nazis to know: your time is short.
"We will allow the site to remain online for 24 hours so the world can witness the hate.
"Then we will shut it down permanently. Hackers of the world have united in defence of the Jewish people.
(Image: Getty)
(Image: Getty)
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"You should have expected us."
Many social media users were questioning the legitimacy of the hack, after news reports emerged that suggested web hosting company Go Daddy had already given the Daily Stormer 24 hours to switch to a new domain.
It came after the article on Ms Heyer, which Go Daddy said violated their terms of service.
"We informed The Daily Stormer that they have 24 hours to move the domain to another provider, as they have violated our terms of service," GoDaddy said.
The Daily Stormer, which calls itself "The World's Most Genocidal Republican Website," endorsed Donald Trump's candidacy for president in 2015.
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The site posted a story titled "Heil Donald Trump - The Ultimate Savior" after Trump proposed a total ban on Muslim immigration.
Donald Trump has faced a furious backlash after refusing to condemn white supremacists who chanted Nazi propaganda in the rally.
Following Trump's statement about the violence in Charlottesville in which he said "we condemn... this egregious display of hatred, bigotry, and violence that's on many sides," the Daily Stormer wrote: "[Trump] refused to answer a question about White Nationalists supporting him.
"No condemnation at all. When asked to condemn, he just walked out of the room. Really, really good. God bless him."