Philip Wood/Malaysian Air 370 story update

In this post I tried to provide all of the data I could about the conspiracy theory concerning Philip Woods having sent out a black photo to a public blog.  As interesting as it would be for this to turn out to be credible, I'm afraid I'll have to scoop everyone on debunking it.  Before I go on, yes, the NSA could be monitoring emails onto the island and perhaps they even intercepted mine and are spoofing the ISP on Diego Garcia.  Anything is possible.  But it always did seem far fetched to me that someone who was not signed up for Internet service on a tiny island like Diego Garcia (where every penny of revenue is important to infrastructure operators) could have gained access to the internet without having an account.

The following email exchange with the ISP basically says that you have to go in and buy a time card before you can get any Internet access at all.  So with apologies to the family of Phil Wood who will likely never be heard from or about again, I'm calling BS on this conspiracy theory.

Here is the email sequence that I initiated:

From: [captain]
Sent: Tuesday, 1 April 2014 8:11 AM
To: info@sure.io
Subject: Connecting to the internet from my cell phone when I land

Hi,
I have an Iphone 5 and may be arriving on island in the next few weeks.  It will be my first visit.  I would like to have internet service as soon as I land.  Is it possible to sign up for service over my iphone or must I come into your offices first or do some other procedure before attaining an Internet connection?  Can it all be done over the iphone even if I don’t already have any service with you?
Thanks,
[Captain]

From: Lita Catapia [mailto:lita.catapia@sure.io]
Sent: Thursday, April 03, 2014 8:45 AM
To: [Captain]
Cc: Jhoy Acuna; Ana Tenebro
Subject: RE: Connecting to the internet from my cell phone when I land

Hi Mr. [Captain]
Thank you for your query.

You may have an internet using your iphone thru our Mobile Data service as long as your iphone is unlock, which means it will accept our simcard.
If not, you can still use it on the internet, but thru our wifi service using a prepaid card @$4.00 an hour.  Our wifi hotspots are located in different
areas in the island.  To be able to check what service your Iphone is capable of from our GSM services, you need to take it to our office for testing.

If I may ask, will you be stationed here in the island or just visiting for a short period of time?  If you will be here a longer period of time, we have
3 different ADSL plans that we can offer you at the confinement of your would-be assigned room.

We will be glad to assist you when you get to the island.

Respectfully,

Lita Catapia
Office Manager

Sure (Diego Garcia) Limited, Diego Garcia, British Indian Ocean Territory.

M: +246 380 2327
T:   +246 370 9304 (Direct)
T:   +246 370 9000 (Switchboard)
(Timezone – GMT/Zulu +6hrs)
www.sure.io


From: Lita Catapia [mailto:lita.catapia@sure.io]
Sent: Thursday, April 03, 2014 9:03 PM
To: [Captain]
Cc: 'Jhoy Acuna'; 'Ana Tenebro'; Sure Engineering
Subject: RE: Connecting to the internet from my cell phone when I land

[Captain],
Your unlocked iphone will still work here using our wifi hotspots without a simcard, but with the use of our prepaid card @$4.00/per hour.

Best regards,
Lita


From: [Captain]
Sent: Friday, 4 April 2014 2:48 AM
To: 'Lita Catapia'
Cc: 'Jhoy Acuna'; 'Ana Tenebro'
Subject: RE: Connecting to the internet from my cell phone when I land

Hi Lita,
Thanks for responding so quickly.  So you are saying that Internet access is completely impossible, even with an unlocked iphone 5,  until I get your SIM card, correct?
Thanks,
Captain


From: Captain
Sent: Friday, 4 April 2014 12:58 PM
To: 'Lita Catapia'
Cc: 'Jhoy Acuna'; 'Ana Tenebro'; 'Sure Engineering'
Subject: RE: Connecting to the internet from my cell phone when I land

Lita,
Can I purchase a prepaid card using my cell phone or must I come into your offices in order to do that?  I was hoping to be able to get internet access as soon as the plane lands.
Thanks,
[Captain]


From: Lita Catapia [mailto:lita.catapia@sure.io]
Sent: Friday, April 04, 2014 3:14 AM
To: [Captain]
Cc: 'Jhoy Acuna'; 'Ana Tenebro'; 'Sure Engineering'
Subject: RE: Connecting to the internet from my cell phone when I land

[Captain],
Our prepaid card is available right at the Pax Terminal.  You can ask one of the Passenger Terminal staff where our Phonecard vending machine is located.  It cost you $20 for one prepaid foneplus card and will give you five hours internet connection.

V/R,

Lita