WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A federal judge in Utah has ruled for the environmental pranksters behind a media hoax targeting Wichita-based Koch Industries Inc. The decision upholds First Amendment protection for anonymous political speech on the Internet.

Koch filed suit over a bogus website and fake December news release that falsely announced the company was changing its financial commitments on climate change to fund more environmentally friendly groups.

On Monday, U.S. District Judge Dale Kimball threw out Koch’s lawsuit seeking the activists’ identities. The judge also rejected all of Koch’s legal claims and issued an order barring it from using any identifying information it already obtained by a subpoena.

The pranksters were represented by Public Citizen Litigation Group, which argued the conduct was protected political speech.