Lawmakers supporting
CISPA were frightened and intimidated by the persuasive powers of
Anonymous, according to CISPA co-author, Rep.
Dutch Ruppersberger (D-Md.).
In an interview published by
The Hill on April 27, Ruppersberger acknowledged that lawmakers were threatened and intimidated by the online international collective known as Anonymous and their opposition to CISPA (The Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act):
"Anonymous was threatening us. Anonymous was telling [others] to shut down people who supported the bill and that kind of thing.
I didn't want to put anybody who was going to support the bill ... to be subjected to those attacks in their districts, and calling and threatening and that type of thing, so we really decided to not get anybody on the bill right away ...”