Cheating Spouses - Private Eyes are Watching

AFFAIRS: Those living in the Klang Valley would have likely seen advertisements with the catchy slogan Catch Cheating Spouse.my emblazoned at the back or on the sides of taxis and buses. What are the ads about? Is the company a specialist in catching cheating spouses? Audrey Vijaindren snoops around to find out

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NOT long ago suspicious spouses had to depend on hoodlums and thugs in seedy private investigation firms, located alongside brothels in dark alleys of rundown neighbourhoods.

Today, one need only catch a taxi or bus, or take a look behind one, to nab a straying partner.

MVD International chief strategy officer (CSO), Rebecca C., says their clever advertising campaign has got the phones ringing off the hook.

“I first penned the phrase ‘Catch Cheating Spouse’ for an investigation campaign in Singapore. It was well received by the people there, I suppose because adultery was and still is one of the highest investigated matters in the country.

“Two years later, it was only natural to start running the same campaign here in Malaysia. We were not sure how the public would respond, but the feedback has been overwhelming.

“Since the ads first appeared at the back of taxis and buses in the Klang Valley, we’ve been getting calls asking us to investigate spouses every single day.

“So much so we’ve even started using the phrase on our company T-shirts and billboards. In fact, some of my private investigators and I hang around popular night spots in the Klang Valley, prominently displaying the catchy phrase on our clothes, just for the fun of it.”

Rebecca says while the increasing number of extramarital affairs is nothing to be proud of, she’s glad to be able to reach out to the “victims” of adultery.

“Almost all women who seek my services are suspicious of their husbands. Some are spot-on about their husbands having a little something on the side, while quite a few are merely paranoid when their husbands work late all day, every day.

“While women check on their spouses, 80 per cent of men check on their girlfriends or mistresses. It’s not uncommon to deal with clients who want to know whether their affair-buddy is having an affair of her own.

“It’s an ugly scenario, but it happens all the time, especially among prominent and wealthy figures, both locals and expatriates alike.”

She says adultery has been around since the time the institution of marriage was established.

“The only difference is victims of adultery used to live in silence, they were more afraid of rocking the boat than confronting their spouse. But today many are investing time and money to find out whether they’re being played out by their partner.

“In the Western world, it’s common practice to go separate ways if the marriage is not working, but there’s still a social stigma in Malaysia. This causes people to stay in a marriage and have affairs. They carry on living secret lives.”

The signs of a cheating spouse are almost always present, she believes.

“There are two types of adulterers, those who are mean and those who play a fantastic role as a loving and faithful spouse in public — this group is often brought up by conservative families. In today’s world, women are equally guilty of playing this role.

“Usually at the beginning of an affair the cheating mate is more attentive to his or her spouse, mainly due to the guilt that they are feeling at the time.

“After the affair has been going on for a while, the cheating mate will try to find fault with his or her spouse as a twisted way of justifying the affair.

“Cheaters may become less bothered about household activities. Many don’t show interest in the day-to-day affairs of their children.

“Cheaters may also display changes in sexual behaviour, either by wanting more sex, less sex or having strange requests.

“At this point the ‘victim’ should monitor his or her spouse for two weeks. During this time, keep track of the mileage on their car, note the time they leave for work and the time they come home. Keep a calendar and journal to help establish a pattern.”

However, having all the facts doesn’t necessarily mean the innocent party always walks out the door, she says.

“This is due to two main factors — social status and children. The need to keep up appearances is especially evident among politicians and businessmen. Many are concerned that the stigma of a divorce will bring about negative connotations and they’re aware that their reputation is at stake.

“These prominent figures, including locals and expatriates, would much rather strike a deal with their spouses to live together for the sake of appearances.

“Although it’s unthinkable for many to live with someone you can’t trust, many of these wives have more to lose than to gain by leaving their cheating husbands. So, they close one eye and enjoy the perks of the marriage.

“There are also those who ignore the elephant in the room for the sake of their children. However, although they may forgive each other, they’re unlikely to forget the betrayal anytime soon.”

Technology, Rebecca says, makes it more difficult for culprits to get away.

“There are numerous items which can be converted into spy cameras these days, most blend into the background without arousing suspicion. Designer handbags, sunglasses, blouse buttons, key chains and motorcycles can all be easily modified.

“Once we obtain the evidence, it can be used in court. Normally, a sworn affidavit by my investigators or testimony in court will follow.

“For divorce proceedings, the best evidence is, of course, a spouse in bed with another person. But our courts know that such evidence isn’t easily obtainable.

“Thus, the next best thing is to obtain circumstantial evidence to build the case. If the client is willing to wait and pay, the ultimate evidence can be obtained.”

Her company’s services are not cheap, but not expensive either, says Rebecca.

“We go by per day rate, but if it’s a foreign country assignment I have to use overseas resources as well, so the charges are much higher.

“For instance, if I need to follow someone who has flown to South Africa, I can’t use a Malaysian agent.

“Similarly, if it’s a man who has gone into a Chinese karaoke lounge, I need to get a Chinese person to follow him around.

“We are licensed and our reports can be used in court. An investigation done by a licensed company is different from the fly-by-night ex-police or army officers who provide similar services. When it comes to our services, there’s definitely no hanky-panky.

“Clients have come to us after being conned or blackmailed by these companies. When dealing with such a sensitive issue, it might be worth paying a bit more to ensure the evidence doesn’t end up on YouTube.”

Q & A with family therapist Dr Johnben Loy

Question: What are the emotions which afflict a betrayed spouse?
Answer: When it’s not yet clear if an affair has occurred, a sense of uncertainty lingers at the back of the mind of a betrayed spouse. Upon confronting the affair, there is often a sense of shock or disbelief, accompanied by deep sadness followed by anger and even rage.

Sometimes, there’s also a denial response where the betrayed spouse refuses to acknowledge that the affair is upsetting for him or her, only to come to terms with their feelings later.

Question: With regards to adultery, is it possible to forgive and forget?
Answer: If your spouse cheated on you, you can still forgive him or her. But to forget is another matter altogether. It’s a lot harder to wipe out the images and scenes that come into the mind — places, objects, events, can all trigger the memory.

Question: If a couple stays together after an affair, what are the necessary steps needed to make the marriage work?
Answer: First of all, the affair must be declared over. Secondly, the spouse who had the affair will have to work hard to win back the trust of the betrayed spouse.
The betrayed spouse may also need a safe place to process the pain. This can be with a therapist or counsellor, or with family, friends, or community leaders.

Question: How would you help a spouse who’s paranoid about his/her partner’s whereabouts and actions?
Answer: I cannot personally help this spouse because the partner may indeed still be having an affair. The key to helping in this situation is for the partner to assure the betrayed spouse that he or she is no longer having the extramarital relationship.

The most incredible example I have seen of this is where a husband, who had cheated on his wife, was willing to give money to his wife to hire a private investigator of her choice to check up on him at any time! The wife’s response was one of gratefulness, deep softening and the rebuilding of trust towards him.

At the core, the message is: “I’m so sorry and I love you so much that I’m willing to be completely transparent with you.”

Question: Is it healthy for couples to have 100 per cent transparency in a marriage?
Answer: Some couples have a lot of personal privacy but still have very healthy marriages. In my own marriage, everything that’s mine is also my wife’s and vice versa. We practise complete transparency, so there’s never the question of fear or betrayal.

We tell each other about our feelings, even those that we might be having for someone else. My wife and I understand that being honest and open — and very importantly, being willing to listen fully to one another — is key to building true friendship that can withstand the pressures and stresses of life.

Question: Is it possible to affair-proof one’s marriage?
Answer: From my years of working with couples and from my own marriage experience, I think that being willing to be open, honest, and taking the risk to communicate even difficult topics can build the kind of relationship where having extramarital relationships become unnecessary and even unappealing.

for more information about cheating spouses, girlfriends, boyfriends, please visit http://www.a2zinvestigations.com. Find out the answers you need to know TODAY!

source:http://www.nst.com.my/nation/general/cheating-spouse-beware-1.83219

Private Investigator Tracks Down Anonymous Online Abusers: $13.8M message for libel

The newspaper headline was shocking and yet comforting: “Texas couple smeared online win lawsuit.”

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram story reported the case of salon-owner Rhonda Lesher and her husband, Mark, who had to close shop in Clarksville, where they lived for 20 years, and move out of town after being subjected to 25,000 online slurs and rumors by several former employees. The anonymous slurs, in which the Leshers were accused of raping a former employee and other perverse acts, were tracked down to 178 IP addresses.

With the help of a private detective at the cost of thousands of dollars, the Leshers tracked down the culprits and eventually filed suit.

The story said, “Three years after a Collin County jury acquitted the Leshers and their employee of aggravated sexual assault, a Tarrant County jury awarded the couple $13.78 million in a libel judgment. The ruling sends the message that people have the freedom to write what they please online, but they can be held accountable.”

The award is believed to be the largest ever assessed in an Internet libel suit, according to the Star-Telegram.

The First Amendment is a cornerstone of American democracy, but even the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that free speech comes with responsibility. While libel cases often involve actions that take place in print, at public events and on the public airwaves, there are no rules and regulations governing the Internet. As one legal expert explains, the Internet

is “outlaw territory” when it comes to expressing facts, opinions, and falsehoods, and making scurrilous attacks.

Now the courts are taking notice, as the Texas award shows, and juries of one’s peers are not going to let the “anonymous” get away with maliciously defaming others.

One can argue that as Internet usage has skyrocketed, and the number of anonymous commenting websites has also soared, America’s art of civil discourse has degenerated dramatically. We can see it on local blogs and community forums where online posters hide their identities and spew hatred and untruths aimed at tarnishing personal reputations and business profiles.

How does someone who is wronged remedy the matter except by getting down in the online gutter and slugging it out with an unknown poster who always seems to get in the last word?

Legally, that’s how.

The Lesher case involved Topix, an independent third-party vendor that hosts hundreds of community commenting boards on newspaper websites across the United States. Topix puts limited restrictions on what can be said on its bulletin boards, believing that the First Amendment is its guardian and protector. Well, it’s found out differently.

The Sentinel & Enterprise, through its parent company, MediaNews Group, employed the Topix system until almost a year ago when it ended the relationship because of the constant barrage of disgusting rhetoric from a core of “super abusers” — people who would switch IP addresses at will and crash conversations with offensive and bigoted speech. Topix could do little to control the onslaught — or refused to — and the Sentinel & Enterprise stopped the service. We now employ a new vendor, Disqus, which requires online posters to register a verifiable IP address and who are subject to penalty if they violate the vendor’s commenting policy.

Where this leads no one knows. However, members of the U.S. Congress are researching ways to regulate abusive speech on the Internet, especially in the financial sector where anonymous campaigns to spread false rumors have negatively impacted publicly traded corporations. It’s only fair that online speech be subjected to the same First Amendment law that holds sway over all other free-speech matters. No one should be allowed to hide behind the Internet to defame the character of an innocent person or organization.

for more information about Private Investigators, or current Private Investigator news, please visit out website: http://www.a2zinvestigations.com

source:http://www.sentinelandenterprise.com/editorial/ci_20561001/13-8m-message-online-abusers

The temptation to cheat

True love, desire… we know the score. When you look closely at the evolution of the idea of infidelity through the course of history, you notice that in the 12th century, the mythical love story of Tristan and Isolde was based on the idea of adultery. More recently, in 1968, children of the baby-boom generation embraced free love. In 2000, in the era of self love, the individual is wedged between ideas of loving someone else, and loving themselves.

Images of love can be fun and communicate an idea of freedom, or can be about marriage and long lasting love. Whatever the nature of a relationship, the idea of infidelity takes its root in the sacred vows of marriage and in a unique kind of love, and it isn’t that easy to detach yourself from these. Whether morals have evolved or not, the temptation to cheat is a difficult thing to deal with for everyone.

Subliminal messages?

From lack of communication in the couple to narcissistic reassurance, the reasons which push an individual towards infidelity are never ones which we are consciously aware of. “Infidelity occurs most often after around four years”, explains Gonzague Masquelier, a psychotherapist. “Of course, the idea of sexual monotony plays a part”, but beyond this, when a partner seeks gratification elsewhere, there is also an unconscious message somewhere. Something is missing, whether it is love, excitement or commitment to the relationship.

Marie, a teacher married for seven years, is driven by the desire to upgrade to something new and exciting. As for men, “they are stuck between the symbols of the madonna and the whore”, adds Dr. Gérard Leleu. Infidelity allows them to separate love and eroticism.

Giving in to temptation…

Apart from these codes of behaviour and the discourse surrounding them, what comes into play with the idea of infidelity is a questioning of the self, and consideration of the consequences for the couple. Why do you want to do it? To hurt the other person, or to reassure yourself? “Most of the time, internal conflicts will date from childhood”, Dr. Gérard Leleu states. Childhood neglect or pain leads an individual who is never satisfied to flit from partner to partner. If the individual becomes conscious of this “infantile programming”, the need to be consoled or to seduce constantly can be dealt with, and there will no longer be this urge to have multiple relationships.

Furthermore, “In looking for what’s missing from the couple elsewhere, the couple will be deprived of the commitment it needs in order to become strong”, Gonzague Masquelier explains. This is a decision which must not be taken lightly.

To confess or not to confess…

The question of confession is a delicate one, to be sure. There is no rule for this and it’s up to you to decide according to your internal convictions… You can make him culpable as well if infidelity really is a symptom of your relationship being on the rocks. “This isn’t working, otherwise I wouldn’t have cheated.” This can be the time to open up discussion. Sometimes indiscretions can end up strengthening a marriage.

“The drama involved in infidelity could be a way of accusing the other person for your own suffering”, according to Gérard Leleu. The mature approach would be for each to take responsibility for their own part in relationship problems.

On the other hand, if it is the need for excitement which has prompted you to look elsewhere, but you still feel there is love holding the couple together, you could potentially avoid talking about it. It is a moment for individual development and there can be no cheating or lying if the love in a relationship is still strong. It is up to you to act according to what you think is best for the couple.

for more information about cheating spouses or if you think your spouse / girlfriend may be cheating, find out the answers now. Visit http://www.a2zinvestigations.com

source:http://uk.lifestyle.yahoo.com/temptation-cheat-220052140.html

Parents tracking children with GPS

Darcie and Chloey Geary, both 11, with dad Paul’s GPS tracking device. Picture: Astrid Volzke/The West Australian

WA parents are taking part in a trial of GPS technology that allows them to track their children and ensure they get to school and home safely, or ensure teenage drivers are not breaking speed limits.

But a child health expert has warned it could cross the boundaries of trust between parent and child.

Developed by Port Kennedy security company AffinityOne, Myionu is a device about half the size of a mobile phone that can be put inside a backpack or pocket.

Parents can program virtual boundaries, such as around a school or home, and create an alert that tells them when the device leaves or arrives at that zone and how fast it is moving.

Myionu includes a duress button, which sends the device’s last recorded location to a list of people. The tracking program can be installed as an app on smartphones.

Rachel Geary, one of a handful of parents testing the device, said her 11-year-old daughter Chloe was happy to carry it.

“I explained it to my children that I’m doing it purely for safety and they were happy about that,” she said. “I know not everyone will look at it that way.”

AffinityOne owner Paul Delaney said the company, which started out making car GPS devices, moved into personal devices after inquiries from parents and from people who had a relative with dementia.

Kate Hadwen, senior research fellow at Edith Cowan University’s Child Health Promotion Research Centre, said GPS tracking could be useful in certain circumstances but could breach trust with children.

“I would encourage parents to have more direct communication with their children,” she said.

She said over-parenting could put children at greater risk of harm because they needed to learn things independently.
Community Services Minister Robyn McSweeney said: “I don’t believe in tracking devices placed on young people. Trust is an essential part of a parent-child relationship.”

for more information about GPS tracking systems, visit us at www.a2zinvestigations.com

source:http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/newshome/13495616/parents-tracking-children-with-gps/

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Private Investigator

The owners of a Germiston house where human remains were found under a swimming pool have been found and contacted, a private investigator said on Monday.

Contractors stumbled upon the remains when excavating the swimming pool during renovations last week.

Investigator Hennie Els said the bones were determined to belong to a young woman.

“We’ve traced the owners who installed the pool at the time.”

They were tracked down in America.

“They have submitted an affidavit to us. We are working on it now and we are trying to trace the swimming pool contractor.

The pool was installed in 1989.

Jonathan Corbett apparently proved his theory.

(Credit: Screenshot by CNET)

The Transport Security Administration’s body scanners have enjoyed a level of controversy similar to that of Rush Limbaugh.

Though they’ve never called women names, the machines have led females to strip to their bra and panties in protest.

Now, Jonathan Corbett–who was the first to sue the TSA over its invasive machines–claims that the body scanners can be easily duped.

His explanation seems quite simple: if you strap your evil-doing object to your side, rather than to your front or back, the scanners provide no visual contrast with the background and therefore won’t spot the object.

On his blog, Corbett declared: “The TSA can’t be that stupid, can they?”

So, to prove his theory, he sewed a pocket into the side of a shirt, took a metallic object, a carrying case of some substance and wafted through the body scanner at Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport.

Oh, you know what’s going to happen, don’t you?

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have written a blog post called: “$1B of TSA Nude Body Scanners Made Worthless By Blog — How Anyone Can Get Anything Past The Scanners.”

“Maybe just fluke,” Corbett declared on his video. So he tried it again at the Cleveland airport. Again, he sails through.

Filled with confidence, he sniffed that he could have been carrying anything on him, even “one of Charlie Sheen’s infamous seven-gram rocks of cocaine.”

The TSA has yet to comment on this video. Normally, Blogger Bob, the TSA’s social media commentator, is very good at offering guidance on all matters to do with the TSA.

Corbett says he’s not trying to make things easier for terrorists. Rather, he’s trying to expose flaws, so that the TSA can fix them quickly in order to make travel in America safer.

However, The Guardian quotes Russell Craig, a spokesman for the U.K.’s Manchester airport, who said, oddly: “He’s taken a small metal tin through. And the guards are looking for a threat object. That’s not one. It’s not a valid test. To say this shows it undermines airport security technology is totally wrong.”

If that doesn’t offer you a fresh frisson, then The Guardian also proffers this from aviation security expert, Philip Baum: “Pretty much every system, you can fool.”

A2Z Invesigations - Cyber Crimes

From compromised machines to mass email lists for spamming, electronically-transferring funds out of bank accounts to phishing attacks—India’s 100 million internet users have become prime targets for hackers across the globe.

A report, titled “Global Risks for 2012”, shows cyber attacks on governments and businesses are considered to be one of the top five risks in the world. Be it cybercrime, cyber-espionage or cyberwarfare — they are on a steady rise. The reason: highly lucrative payout hackers get from stealing data. “There are high profit margins and low-detection rate by law enforcement agencies. Further, half of the data thefts (on both individual PCs and enterprise PCs) are executed from remote or stolen server locations, which only makes prosecution difficult,” points an ethical hacker employed with a large Indian IT outsourcing company.

E-mails, personal data and financial data are the most sought after “goods” in the black market, says Pankaj Jain, director, ESET India. “The e-fraud business that has been traditionally flourishing in India is credit card cloning. The cloning itself is mostly performed by Nigerians living in India, though the card data they get are usually from Russian and former Soviet Union hackers on underground forums,” he says.

The fast-maturing cyber crime economy
Even as enterprises and individuals struggle with internet threats, the underground cybercrime economy has moved on to organised entrepreneurship. An ethical hacker from New Delhi, who regularly accesses the digital black market where cybercriminals advertise and trade stolen information and services, shared how the advertisements are done. “Search, compare, and if you find a better offer we will return your money…,” reads an ad selling user data in black market journals. With the economic crisis looming large, such claims and ads are on the rise.

“Today, the main concern for the data sellers is to generate trust among their clients,” the ethical hacker tells Business Standard. He added that data sellers have started offering free “trial” access to stolen bank or credit card details as well as money-back guarantees and free exchanges. “Since there is a great deal of competition in the cyber black market, the rule of supply and demand ensures that prices are competitive, with operators even offering bulk discounts to high-volume buyers,” says a security consultant at a leading pharmaceutical R&D unit in Bangalore.

Preying on enterprise data
The booming Indian economy, coupled with the growing buying power of individuals, is attractive to hackers. “Many industries like BPO, software, automobiles, pharmaceuticals among others are doing business across the globe from India. This certainly brings India on the wish list of hackers for data breaches and monetary gains,” says Amit Nath, country manager (India & Saarc), Trend Micro.

Hackers mostly use chance or targeted approach. “Chance approach is used when volume matters, ie, for stealing credit card, bank account and email account information. Such attacks usually consist of sending malware, trojans through mass emails, social network scams and infected links,” says Jain of ESET.

Targeted approach is used when the criminal has a certain intent or victim in mind and the attack is tailored to make use of certain security flaws in the system. These attacks are usually used to target organisations, government or celebrities. A compromised PC could be used by a hacker in his network for attacking other computers, and also for studying the web browsing pattern or interaction of the user on the internet.

Today, teams of ethical hackers or security consultants work with most leading corporates and R&D outfits, tinkering with corporate IT networks to ensure the data exchanged between employees is not mishandled or, worse, stolen by rival companies.

Threats are not always limited to financial fraud alone, says Atul Khatavkar, VP (IT Governance Risk Compliance), AGC Networks. He says, “There could be cases of intellectual property theft, too. For example, the vice-president of an e- learning firm – sacked from the company later – was accused of stealing the source code of the company’s future product. He subsequently used the product for his new venture, and the e-learning firm had to book nearly Rs 47 crore in losses due to the theft.” Government and defence data, too, is always in demand, especially by hackers in China and Pakistan, lists ESET.

Not wishing to be left behind, many enterprises are leveraging on social media tools. In a report, ISACA advises that enterprises must consider the risks of employee access to social media sites while on the corporate network.

for more information on how to protect your identity / cyber crimes / or any other private investigator work, please contact the private investigators at A2Z Invesigations www.a2zinvestigations.com

source:http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/cyber-crime-is-nowbooming-industry/462549/

Warrant Needed for GPS Tracking, High Court Says

In a rare defeat for law enforcement, the Supreme Court unanimously agreed on Monday to bar police from installing GPS technology to track suspects without first getting a judge’s approval. The justices made clear it wouldn’t be their final word on increasingly advanced high-tech surveillance of Americans.

Indicating they will be monitoring the growing use of such technology, five justices said they could see constitutional and privacy problems with police using many kinds of electronic surveillance for long-term tracking of citizens’ movements without warrants.

While the justices differed on legal rationales, their unanimous outcome was an unusual setback for government and police agencies grown accustomed to being given leeway in investigations in post-Sept. 11 America, including by the Supreme Court. The views of at least the five justices raised the possibility of new hurdles down the road for police who want to use high-tech surveillance of suspects, including various types of GPS technology.

“The Supreme Court’s decision is an important one because it sends a message that technological advances cannot outpace the American Constitution,” said Donald Tibbs, a professor at the Earle Mack School of Law at Drexel University. “The people will retain certain rights even when technology changes how the police are able to conduct their investigations.”

A GPS device installed by police on Washington, D.C., nightclub owner Antoine Jones’ Jeep and tracked for four weeks helped link him to a suburban house used to stash money and drugs. He was sentenced to life in prison before an appeals court overturned his conviction.

source: http://www.pinewswire.net/article/warrant-needed-for-gps-tracking-high-court-says/

for more information about GPS Tracking systems or if you are in need of a private investigator in New Jersey or New York, please contact the professionals at www.a2zinvestigations.com

Anonymous: Facebook is next

In a YouTube video that appears to be linked to a known Anonymous account, the hacker collective offers a linked program in order to attack Facebook.

A frame from the Anonymous video.

(Credit: Screenshot by CNET)

“While it is true that Facebook has at least 60,000 servers, it is still possible to bring it down.”

These are the words of the anonymous voice that purports to represent Anonymous in a video posted to YouTube today.

“An online war has begun between Anonymous, the people, and the government of the United States,” the narrator begins. The reason: SOPA, PIPA and other perceived threats to Internet rights.

In order to bring down Facebook, the video asks for everyone who understands and supports Anonymous’ position to participate in this online protest. This is a protest that began over the last week, says the narrator, with attacks on the CBS.com, Warner Brothers, and FBI sites.

The narrator suggests that anyone who supports the cause download a program in order to participate in a Facebook attack.

The attack, he says, needs to be coordinated for a specific time in order to bring down the servers. So the time chosen is 12 a.m., January 28.

“Do not fear,” continues the narrator. “There is no way you can get caught.” He adds: “They cannot take down that large of a group.”

What is at stake, he says, is the fate of the Internet.

The YouTube account associated with this threat appears to have some Anonymous connection. There is more than one of the group’s videos posted to it.

However, not so long ago, another YouTube video was posted, purporting to be in Anonymous’ name, in which the promise was that Facebook would go down November 5. It didn’t.

What isn’t entirely clear from the video is why Facebook has been singled out. Is it the company’s relatively tardy opposition to SOPA? The video seems to simply align Facebook with the government, without offering further explanation.

Between now and Saturday, there will be claims and counterclaims as to the possibilities of this operation.

I have contacted Facebook to seek the company’s reaction and will update accordingly.

Can people truly live without status updates? Perhaps Saturday we will see.

Update, 2:10 p.m. PT: A tweet from the AnonOps Twitter account denies that this video has anything to do with Anonymous: “Again we must say that we will not attack #Facebook! Again the mass media lie.”

Facebook, for its part, told me through a representative that it’s ready for attacks from Anonymous or anyone else.

The representative said: “We expect Anonymous just like we expect any other attack on any other day. Due to our size, we face the same threats as seen everywhere else on the Web, but we have developed partnerships, backend systems, and protocols to confront the full range of security challenges we face. Facebook has always been committed to protecting our users’ information, and we will continue to innovate and work tirelessly to defend this data.”