A central Florida mayor's name is on a list of politicians with alleged ties to the Ku Klux Klan.
Ocala Mayor Kent Guinn says he plans to fight the accusations.
The FBI is investigating the leak of more than a half-dozen politicians with alleged tied to the KKK after a group of hackers by the name Anonymous released their names.
Guinn stood on the steps of City Hall on Monday and addressed the allegations.
“I was mad. I was very, very mad because that’s not me, and for someone to accuse me of that, it’s very upsetting,” Guinn said. “This is an absolute lie. I have never been, am not now, nor will I ever be, a member of that group.”
Guinn was on the list of numerous senators and several mayors.
He claims he has no ties to the KKK and has no idea why he was on the list.
“I have no idea, and if you can find them, ask them. I have no idea. This is a complete surprise to me. I have no idea,” Guinn said.
The mayor said the FBI and U.S. attorneys are investigating and he hopes they can track down the hackers. He said they should pay for trying to tarnish his name.
“I do not know who anonymous is, or where they come from. Hopefully, we will find out and we’ll pursue any civil litigation,” Guinn said. “Show who you are. Come out and tell is who you are and why you did this.”
Gaelen Adams with Hack UCF, which teaches online security, said finding who the group really is, is a daunting challenge because Anonymous members don’t know each other and are based all over the world.
“These people have good operational security so they know all the ways they can be tracked and can be found, so they do the best they can to mitigate, you know, being found out, through those normal standard methods,” said Adams.
Guinn’s supporters said they don’t think the situation will ruin his reputation and hope it makes the community stronger.
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