Edward Snowden, Chelsea Manning, Jack T? The 21-year-old certainly did not expect that his name would be mentioned in the same breath as the most well-known ‘traitors’ in recent US history. The young man responsible for the biggest data leak in years is probably not even a whistleblower. As it turns out, T. didn’t want to uncover any injustice, he didn’t want to change the world. Apparently he just wanted to show off. In front of his friends – most of whom he probably didn’t even know.
Who is the man who has made the US secret services sweat and the White House in need of explanations? Who is Jack T?
At the beginning of March, dozens of alleged US documents from various intelligence sources, some even from the US high command, appeared on social media. A month later, the whole world knew about the data leak. Although some of the information was obviously manipulated after the fact, much of it is, as far as we know, genuine.
In addition to precise front lines, troop locations and the state of Ukraine’s air defenses, the hundreds of pages of suspected secret material are also intended to prove how far-reaching the US secret services espionage abroad goes – not just that of enemies. The documents are intended to prove that US spies also bugged allied governments in Israel, South Korea and Ukraine. Even UN Secretary-General António Guterres could be among those being spied on.
It is difficult to say what lies behind the fear that the so-called Discord leaks could set back planning for Ukraine’s spring offensive. In any case, it is still unclear what consequences the leak will have.
Watch the video: Former classmates after the 21-year-old was arrested – “Not his smartest idea”.
On Discord, a platform popular with gamers in particular (read more here), T. is known to his friends as “OG”. In a private chat room he runs called “Thug Shaker Central”, 20 to 30 handpicked members from different countries are said to have come together.
What half a year later was supposed to bring heavily armed federal agents to T.’s doorstep actually began ‘harmlessly’ – as a digital space where young men and teenagers made (sometimes racist) jokes about her during the endless boredom of corona isolation shared a weakness for weapons and played war games, presumably shooters. According to the Washington Post, it was about “memes, lewd jokes and idle chatter”.
One member described T. as a charismatic gun nut, another said, according to the New York Times: “He was the man, the myth, and he was the legend, everyone respected this man.” That’s what T. was obviously about: respect, recognition. When he began posting sensitive information via chat in October 2022, he was reportedly not happy with his clique’s muted response. At the time he is said to have typed the classified information by hand. Apparently, his audience didn’t get much out of the complicated memos. T. then upped the ante by forwarding photos and original documents, including detailed maps showing the course of the front and images of Russian military equipment. From here, it was only a matter of time before the information made its way to other platforms and eventually out into the world. It should end up being around 350 pages. At the moment we can only speculate about the consequences.
“I never wanted it to come to this,” T. said in a phone call at Thug Shaker Central, according to a chat member, according to the NYT. “Guys it was good – love you all.” The FBI arrived a little later. Live footage of his arrest, taken from the air, went around the world. You can see how heavily armored special forces lead a lanky man in red sports shorts away. The suspect does not resist.
Photos on social media accounts of his family members show a young, handsome man – according to US reports, sometimes with the family dogs, sometimes riding a quad, sometimes in a Boston Celtics basketball jersey. “Happy 19th birthday to our IT guy and part-time delivery man, Jack!” T.’s mom wrote on her flower shop’s Facebook account in December 2019. She also posts a two-part photo showing her son as a baby and in a military uniform. Six months later, her son graduates from high school.
However, he missed the graduation ceremony in his hometown of North Dighton, a small town about an hour’s drive from Boston. T. prefers to attend basic Air Force training. A year earlier he had voluntarily joined the Massachusetts Air National Guard, a reserve unit of the US Air Force. A family tradition, so to speak. His stepfather reportedly served for 34 years and his mother volunteered for veterans.
In the end, a photo on one of his sister’s social media accounts was fatal to the young “patriot”, as chat friends described him. According to the NYT, one picture showed a kitchen worktop “which appeared to be identical to the surface on which the classified documents were photographed.”
It is unclear what T. is blooming now. According to Attorney General Merrick Garland, his arrest was “in connection with an investigation into the alleged unauthorized removal, storage and disclosure of classified national defense information.” This in turn suggests that T. could be charged with violations of the so-called “Espionage Act” of 1917. The law states that it is illegal for anyone with national defense-related information to be used “to the detriment of the United States” or “to the benefit of a foreign nation.” Put simply, anyone who betrays state secrets faces up to ten years in prison for each violation.
For Washington, the whole story is not only highly embarrassing, but a real security risk. A risk that – as before – could have been avoided.
According to T.’s service record, his job title is “Cyber ??Transport Systems journeyman,” meaning he shares responsibility for maintaining the Air Force’s communications network. As a qualification, the Air Force requires seven and a half weeks of basic military training as well as the completion of a comprehensive background check, during which family members of the applicant are interviewed, among other things. It is still unclear what security clearance T. has. However, according to information from the WP, he had access to the Department of Defense’s internal computer network, the “Joint Worldwide Intelligence Communications System”. According to an anonymous official, that was probably enough to read and possibly even print out the explosive records.
T. holds the rank of Airman First Class in the National Guard. What sounds top notch is actually the third lowest rank in the Air Force. Of course, the question arises: how does a young professional who is only just legally allowed to buy beer get secret documents?
The short answer: Contrary to what you might think, “Top Secret” isn’t all that secret. Although this is actually the highest level of classified information in the US after Confidential and Secret, more than a million US government employees and contractors potentially have access to such ‘top secret’ information. That’s according to a 2020 report to Congress by the National Counterintelligence and Security Center. In the Pentagon, according to the US magazine “Politico”, young officers often put together briefings for high-ranking executives. However, their access often goes far beyond their field of activity. That could also have been the case with T.
The statements by Pentagon spokesman Patrick Ryder also suggest this. It is not unusual for young people to be given access to secret information and to have great trust in them. “That’s called military discipline,” he said on Thursday.
Trust is good, (more) control would obviously have been better here.
Quellen: BBC; “New York Times” (1); “New York Times” (2); “Washington Post”; “Politico”; “Vox”
