Bank of America has cut off WikiLeaks; the number of financial organizations to stop payments to WikiLeaks is growing. Image from WikiMedia Commons.
Bank of America cut off WikiLeaks from receiving any payments from the organization. B of A has joined a host of other companies to do likewise. Some believe that finance companies are doing so ahead of a WikiLeaks release of bank documents in 2011.
WikiLeaks cut off from receiving payment from Bank of America
A host of financial companies have cut off WikiLeaks from receiving payments from those respective organizations, and Bank of America has joined the WikiLeaks denial of cash bandwagon. Just a few days ago, Bank of America announced that it had suspended any payments that were going to the WikiLeaks organization, according to the New York Times, as the company did not handle itself in a manner that B of A felt was in accordance with its corporate values. Other companies have been doing so as well. PayPal, MasterCard and Visa Europe have all refused to handle or process any payments being sent to WikiLeaks over the last couple of weeks, which resulted in directed denial of service, or DDOS attacks on those respective websites.
Backlash could be the motive ahead of bank document release
There is some suspicion that Bank of America cutting off WikiLeaks, and other organizations, has everything to do with a preventative backlash. In an interview given weeks ago with Forbes, Julian Assange, the head of WikiLeaks, announced that he had a lot of information that could “take down” a major American bank. He also said that WikiLeaks had documents from Bank of America specifically, that had come from a hard drive possessed by a former executive.
Assange out on bail
Julian Assange is currently out on bail in England. A lengthy court engagement granted him limited release with strict conditions, while the decision over extradition of Assange is weighed in court. He faces sexual assault charges in Sweden, though it isn’t known how solid the case is.
All of this would be brushed under the carpet if they where not taking such an extreme reaction to the leaks!