Leak

The growth of the internet and social networking sites makes it easier for whistleblowers, or anyone else wishing to alert public opinion and resist attempts to muzzle them. The fact that a leak will reach a huge online readership while the perpetrator remains anonymous makes it an attractive option. Websites like Wikileaks have more or less institutionalised the process. Because they regularly publish documents from anonymous but usually well-informed sources, they present a real headache for the authorities. But it’s not only state secrets that can be leaked – far from it. The motives of those who disseminate leaked information are usually far less noble, as it normally consists of pirated material (photos, games, etc) put online without the consent of the person concerned. Online piracy has become practically a national sport, so it is not surprising to see the word “leak” used more and more. Go online and you’ll find that Beyoncé’s latest album was leaked before its launch, like the new id Software video game RAGE, or that someone has leaked nude photos of Scarlett Johansson or Blake Lively. The list is endless. Inevitably, “leak” is starting to be used as an intransitive verb: instead of “the file was leaked” we now see “the file leaked”. Leaking isn’t the preserve of activists, concerned citizens or internet hackers: anyone can do it, if the information is even slightly confidential or compromising. It’s tempting, too, as leaked information is worth more in web terms than official information, and it circulates faster online. That explains why some games or music publishers deplore the practice of leaking as it compromises their product launches, but others are surfing the wave. I’m thinking of the video games or smartphone manufacturers whose launch campaigns are invariably preceded by a healthy buzz online because someone has leaked a photo, for instance. We learn that the manufacturers issued a completely informal invitation to a group of geeks a few days prior to the launch to have their reactions to the new product. Of course, at the start of the meeting the geeks were asked to turn off all their mobile phones to prevent leaks of information…. It worked. The manufacturers knew, without fail, that details of the new product would be leaking onto the internet in no time.