In November 2009, shortly before the Copenhagen climate summit, an intruder stole more than 1,000 emails, 2,000 documents, and commented source code from the University of East Anglia’s Climatic Research Unit. The files covered research from 1996 to 2009 and were redistributed through climate-change denial blogs. Selective excerpts—especially a 1999 email from CRU director Phil Jones referring to a “trick” and “hide the decline”—were presented as evidence that scientists had fabricated temperature data or suppressed dissent.
The subsequent record did not substantiate those claims. Six investigations, along with reviews by the Associated Press, FactCheck, scientific journals, and government bodies, found no evidence of fraud or scientific misconduct, and the scientific consensus on human-caused warming was unchanged. The episode nevertheless exposed serious transparency and governance problems: researchers discussed avoiding data requests from hostile critics, and the UK Information Commissioner’s Office said the emails offered prima facie evidence of an attempt to defeat disclosure, although prosecution was time-barred. Reviews criticized CRU and UEA for mishandling Freedom of Information requests and urged greater openness about data, methods, and contractual restrictions.
