Anonymous Strikes Back, Hacks "Internet Security" Firm

[Phyroxis]

Does anyone else feel a movie adaptation coming up?

In all honesty, I think the FBI should just hire Anonymous.

You can't hire an idea. Anon aren't all hackers. Anon is a collection of like-minded people tied solely around an ideology. Even then its loosely based. Some are hackers, many are not.

I know that. Doesn't mean they couldn't come to an agreement with the part of Anonymous that is hacker.

Isn't the whole point of this news story the fact that they can't find Anon? Or the Anon who are hacking? =P

Besides, this isn't an example of hacking, honestly. Aside from the entry, its mostly just social engineering.

Well let's see, they broke into their website, replaced it with their own, and infiltrated and published all of the private emails of the company.

What part of this is "not hacking"?

Most of it. Hacking was getting and spoofing the initial e-mail. The rest was social engineering and childs play. Any middle-schooler can make a web page or a torrent.

I'm not saying they didn't do a lot, I'm saying that calling it hacking is downplaying the other skills at work here.

They didn't make a webpage, they replaced GaryHB's.

Honestly, what IS hacking if this isn't it? I understand something like DDOS involves running a premade program, that's not hacking. But they got into the site, edited it, and stole over 60000 emails, what would you consider hacking? Is anything less than the Skynet takeover considered hacking by you?

Remember, before they got the password from the admin, they had to GET INTO THE EMAIL SERVER to make it look like it was from them. Also, they hacked his Twitter.

If you read my original post I prefaced it with "Other than entry to the e-mail system" and continued with "it was social engineering."

I don't think you understand the distinction technology involved. Just because someone gains access to a technological system, doesn't mean they "hacked" into it. There are many different methods for getting into technological systems. The one that they most used here was social engineering with a bit of technological know-how.

Its really not hacking to ask someone in the company to give you passwords. Yeah, they used technology to access the companies files (and change the website) after they got the passwords, but the means was by those passwords NOT hacking into the systems. If you gave the password to your website's Cpanel, I could change your frontpage in 30 seconds. Once in, its childsplay. Getting in was social engineering.

Also, hacked twitter is just another (wrongly labeled) way of saying "they got his password or e-mail account" AKA, they used the e-mail account that they had access to, to get his twitter password. To actually hack a twitter account they'd have had to compromise the security of Twitter itself, which they did not.

 

[Azaraxzealot]

they've already taken it too far by attacking the government. they need to quit now lest the risk harsher and harsher punishments... actually don't quit.

anyone willing to do these things that anonymous does obviously deserves the life imprisonment that's coming to them.

 

[JUMBO PALACE]

Damn that was ballsy. Good for them.

 

[Dastardly]

Anonymous Strikes Back, Hacks "Internet Security" Firm

All they're doing at this point is feeding the idea that the internet needs to be more heavily policed. It's just some kids showing off tricks under the guise of activism, not having the foresight to see how their antics are actually working against their alleged goals.

For every pocket of "good" hackers flying the 'Anonymous' banner, there are a dozen of this childish, bad variety undoing it. This isn't a comic book. Faceless vigilantism just allows the established power to promote a culture of fear, and thus control.

What has made true revolutionaries of the past different is that they empowered the common man. They taught them. Gave them skills, organized them, and put them to work freeing themselves. They didn't flit around playing Batman or Zorro, spitting in the eye of the government in the name of the people--and thus helping to clench the iron fist on those same people.

 

[RollingThunder]

Hmm, I'm interested to see how this ends.
Prediction right now: the internet gets turned off. Yes it's an incredibly drastic move, but I calls 'em like I sees 'em.

Nope, the Govt. won't do that, why? because only US internet will go down while other countries are still up and running, then it will come to businesses unable to do transactions and it will bring the whole economy down.

 

[Bretty]

Snip

Of course you are correct here. There does need to be that line. But you currently have no chance of neutrality as it is.

I think of this as Robin Hood. Only replace robin with unknowns who dont care about the masses and replace the Sherrif with someone who thinks they are doing right but is being played like a puppet by those above him.

I feel no sadness or outrage for this company. They are getting rich on your and other American's information. This is why they were targeted. Remember that this company is not targetting but netting entire areas of internet usage, the info they find will be sold to whoever wants to buy it.

^This is sad. This is why someone like Anon needs to be there. There is a cost to 'stealing' information and luckily there are those at there willing to take the risks, especially now that the stakes are higher and RL punishment is the cost of failure.

 

[TheTaco007]

I have no interest in this battle but I do find it hilarious. I demand more news!

This.

"Your can't take away people's right to be assholes." - John Spartan, The Demolition Man.

Anon are a bunch of jerks, but this is really awesome that they've managed to cause so much harm to the people trying to screw them over.

 

[RandallJohn]

I'm so tired of hearing about these guys :/

 

[Lancer873]

Dont this people have anything better to do? If they used all that time and energy on legal things they could make lots of money.

wow anonymous really needs to be taken out there too dangerous and too good at what they do

Agreed. 'Anonymous' are really just criminals who use ID theft to fund their crimes. Calling themselves 'heroes' is insulting to anybody who works for a living.

Another group of people not understanding what Anonymous is...

Anonymous isn't good, it isn't bad, and it certainly isn't anything that can be "taken out." In a sense, the concept of the group of Anonymous extends to everyone on the internet (though depending on who you ask, you might get varying answers about how far it does extend). It's like a crowd of people with no real connection to each other. When one person shouts out a message, some people might start following him, and then they are considered by many to be the one voice of Anonymous, despite being just a small part of Anonymous. Whether you consider Anonymous to only be the people on 4chan, or the people on all the chan-sites, or the people on all sites that have the option to remain anonymous, any site that uses a username, or the entire internet, Anonymous isn't good or bad, because humanity isn't just either good or bad.



TL;DR version: Anonymous isn't good or bad because it's not organized. It has never unified towards any single cause, good or bad, ever.

On the topic of this particular attack, I'd say they damn well showed that company not to mess around. You'd think a security company would be wiser than to just give out passwords via e-mail.

 

[Reed Spacer]

I'm just waiting for the sequel: Return of the FBI, where Anonymous rescues the five hackers from Jabba's vile clutches and we get to see Vader without his mask on.

 

[RollingThunder]

Anonymous Strikes Back, Hacks "Internet Security" Firm

All they're doing at this point is feeding the idea that the internet needs to be more heavily policed. It's just some kids showing off tricks under the guise of activism, not having the foresight to see how their antics are actually working against their alleged goals.

For every pocket of "good" hackers flying the 'Anonymous' banner, there are a dozen of this childish, bad variety undoing it. This isn't a comic book. Faceless vigilantism just allows the established power to promote a culture of fear, and thus control.

What has made true revolutionaries of the past different is that they empowered the common man. They taught them. Gave them skills, organized them, and put them to work freeing themselves. They didn't flit around playing Batman or Zorro, spitting in the eye of the government in the name of the people--and thus helping to clench the iron fist on those same people.

Heavy policing the internet won't do any good because it's only run in the country doing it, so there'll be people all around the world ready to provide services to accommodate their needs.

 

[Dastardly]

So, I have a question - if Anonymous is this amorphous blob with no organization...who decides what to put in the open letter?

Basically, all of Batman's tools, vehicles, and weapons are set out in the internet's "common era." Anyone can put on the mask, regardless of motivations, and fall under the protection of the logo. And therein lies the problem of the faceless vigilante.

Calling for more transparency while avoiding transparency does nothing for your cause. Doing so while poking the beast, and then exhibiting no sensible follow through is even worse. They're just going to make the wrong people angry, and those people will make the right people afraid, and then the rest of the population gets stuck dealing with the fallout (in the form of strict supervision and regulation).

Vigilantism like this isn't for a cause. It's for a person to get to run around and do "fun" things in a consequence-free environment. It's childish wish fulfillment, all for the rush of "sticking it to the man." It's no different from the kid that steals the teacher's grade book for kicks, and gets the entire class stuck with no recess or movies for the rest of the year--if he had a point to prove, this didn't do it, and now everyone is a little worse off for it.

 

[MarsProbe]

Anonymous isn't an organization like I first thought; I realize that now. It's just a bunch of bored teenagers with some mild computing skills and a "screw the world complex". They're not freedom fighters or whatever and they're not super-dangerous hackers. They think they're hot shit but in my opinion, this whole thing's not going to last very long. The US government, for all its flaws, doesn't take well to getting messed with.

Indeed, nothing would give me more pleasure than to see "Anonymous" dealt such a heavy blow that rips apart their pathetic so-called orgaonisation once and for all, and preferably ends up with most of them facing some jail time or at least having to stump up some hefty fines.

You can big these people up all you want and congratulate them for "sticking it to the man" but unless they have the guts to stick their scrawny frames out from behind their computers and enter the real world, then I couldn't even begin to have the slightest shred of respect for this ragtag bunch. It's time to grow up kids and do something useful with your life.

 

[Baralak]

Please, people, for the love of all that is good, try to understand. Anonymous is not a group. It's not an organization. It's not a bunch of hackers all banded together to accomplish a goal. Anonymous is a Mask.

The reason they seem so unfocused and so hard to catch, and the reason why sometimes they do great justice and other times they are just douchebags and criminals, is because they are not united. Anonymous is exactly like the Guy Fawkes mask it so often dons. You pick it up, you put it on, and now anything you do is put on the tab of the mask, not you.

Think of it as in The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, when you reach the top of the thieves guild, you get the Gray Fox mask, and when you wear it, you have a 10,000 gold bounty and can do whatever you want, but when you take it off, you are you and nobody is any the wiser.

Great analogy! Couldn't explain it better myself!

 

[Dastardly]

Anonymous Strikes Back, Hacks "Internet Security" Firm

All they're doing at this point is feeding the idea that the internet needs to be more heavily policed. It's just some kids showing off tricks under the guise of activism, not having the foresight to see how their antics are actually working against their alleged goals.

For every pocket of "good" hackers flying the 'Anonymous' banner, there are a dozen of this childish, bad variety undoing it. This isn't a comic book. Faceless vigilantism just allows the established power to promote a culture of fear, and thus control.

What has made true revolutionaries of the past different is that they empowered the common man. They taught them. Gave them skills, organized them, and put them to work freeing themselves. They didn't flit around playing Batman or Zorro, spitting in the eye of the government in the name of the people--and thus helping to clench the iron fist on those same people.

Heavy policing the internet won't do any good because it's only run in the country doing it, so there'll be people all around the world ready to provide services to accommodate their needs.

A little bit of international cooperation won't be too hard to drum up, as these antics start to cross borders more often. Remember--the internet spans the world, but it still requires real infrastructure to access. There are places where governments can exert strict control, and I'd rather they didn't... but they will, because this sort of thing scares other people, too. Not just the ones in power.

 

[Little Duck]

I laughed. A lot.

 

[Imat]

I want Anonymous to be the global internet authority... they are fair, reasonable, and take no sides, just equality.

Best of all... they're not governed or goverment... they are everyday joes!

I'm not even sure if this is supposed to be a real thing...Did you mean this for sarcasm? Because honestly that sounds like the very worst possibility I can conceive of...Well, maybe not the very worst, but so close as to be a non-issue. And the very worst is hardly a possibility.

No good can come of Anonymous. Whatever good they could have done was canceled out long ago by their extreme willingness to hack into anybody and everybody's websites, do whatever they want, and call it "justice." Justice would be a fine and some jail-time for these people who believe themselves above the law. They ain't helping anybody, quite the opposite in fact, and I simply cannot support their methods, not in the least. There was a time, before I became a mature, responsible human being with some basic sense of right and wrong, when I would have been all for Anonymous. That time is long gone.