I. Introduction
Anonymous is a loose association of hackers, cyber-activists, and Internet protesters who share a common interest in Internet freedom, anti-authority and the use of information technology and irreverence as a tools to realize their goals. Since its first appearance over a decade ago, Anonymous has perpetrated some of the world’s most infamous cyber-attacks and Internet disruptions including the February 2011 intrusion of the Internet security firm HBGeary, the April 2011 hack of Sony, and its current campaign to destroy the Internet capabilities of the Islamic State.
II. History
While the exact beginnings of Anonymous are only known to a few, its origin can be traced back to the early 2000s and an online forum/discussion board known as “4chan”. 4chan was originally started by Christopher Poole in 2003 as a place where people interested in Japanese culture, comics, video games, and technology could meet, discuss, debate and otherwise connect with each other (Mikhaylova, 2014). The way the Poole administered 4chan was to allow for as much freedom as possible. There were only a few rules, namely members were not allowed to violate the law. More importantly, members were not required to use their real names. To be sure, users that did not use their real name or any name for that matter were automatically assigned the “default handle Anonymous (Kushner, 2014). Structurally, 4chan consisted of a number of forums that focus on a specific topic such as anime, pornography, or technology. Two of its most famous boards were /pol/, which focused on politically incorrect topics; and /b/, which focused on all the topics that were prohibited from being discussed in other forums including extreme pornography, racist ideas, and obscenity (Dewey, 2014). Naturally, many of the posters to these two forums did not use their names, and were therefore, as mentioned simply known as anonymous. In 2004, some of the posters to the /b/ began to refer to those who posted anonymously as a collective known as “Anonymous” (Kushner, 2014). Indeed, originally Anonymous was simply a group of like-minded people posting content on 4chan’s /pol/ and /b/ boards for “lulz” or “laughs and giggles” eventually morphed in like-minded people that work together to use the Internet to disrupt those they deem should be punished.
III. Structure
While the Anonymous is commonly thought to be a single, hierarchical group; the reality is that it is much more like a “series or relationships” or a “shape-shifting sub culture” (Kushner, 2014). Indeed, it is not a “group” in the strict sense of the word but rather an idea that is attractive to a certain type of person. Accordingly, there are no procedures that need to be completed to join the Anonymous. Instead, one can join simply by identifying and advocating with the core values and principles that are common to the vast majority of its members. Just as someone who believes in social justice and the welfare state could become a Democratic; a person that believes in Anonymous’ values could join the collective. It is important to understand the decentralized structure of Anonymous. While there are definitely facilitators in the collective work to inform and organize members to take action, there is no top person, central headquarters, or definitive hierarchy that can be attacked, arrested or stopped. In fact, stopping one, two or twenty would never eliminate others who are advocating for the same ideas. As Anonymous describes itself, “we are legion”
III. Values and Principles
The key to understanding Anonymous is to understand the general values and principles that its members believe in an advocate for in their actions. While different groupings in Anonymous might target different parties, all true Anonymous members will believe in a few central, core values. Moreover, the principles that under each value are same that made 4chan’s forums so popular, namely “bemusement, belittlement, and anything it takes to make you laugh” (Norton, 2012). Anonymous’ fundamental values stress Internet freedom, liberty, and anonymity. The values are further imbued with opposition to censorship, standing up for the Internet, and protecting the privacy of all individuals (Mikhaylova, 2014). In addition, Anonymous has also increasingly shown its support for standing to any and all political oppressors, fighting injustice, protecting those values stated in the Bill of Rights, and fighting against corruption. In essence, the values that Anonymous most deeply supports are those that would make the world a fairer, safer, more equitable, and that the Internet and cyberspace are uncontrollable. Lastly, while being tech-savvy is not a requirement to join Anonymous; technical know-how is the weapon of choice for most of its actions, so having a knowledge or interest in technology is a bonus.
IV. Method of Operation
While the actions that Anonymous has taken range from minor disruptions, such as the “trolling” or frustrating of the social media of a person that it has issues with; to major acts that have global effect such as the 2010 attack that blocked PayPal, Amazon, MasterCard and Visa (Norton, 2012); the one most common method of operation is the coordinated collective strike. These attacks are usually organized in Internet Relay Chat (IRC) channels. IRC are computer programs that can allow a group of people to meet and discuss in real time. Anonymous began to use these instead of meeting on 4chan after it began operating as a collective. The main Anonymous IRC channel is open to all, but if you spend enough time on it, you will begin to understand the names of different sub-groups and the back channels that they use to communicate but avoid detection (Dewey, 2014). When a target is determined, it will be proposed on the IRC. If enough interest is sparked, plans are made and announced to the collective. It is then up to each individual to take action according to the announced plans or if they so desire, individual members or groups can do as they see fit. The potential results can have a seismic effect that even the largest most sophisticated organizations have been unable to defend against.
V. Common Targets
The is no set groups or individuals that Anonymous targets. Over the years, their targets have included repressive regimes in North Africa and the Middle East, the Church of Scientology, Atlanta Records, the Cleveland, Ohio police after the shooting of Tamir Rice, the Ku Klux Klan, and the Cambodian government (Hern, 2015). In essence, they tend to target anyone that falls outside of or violates their set of beliefs.
References
Anderson, Nate. “Anonymous attacks Sony to protest PS3 hacker lawsuit.” Ars Technica, Apr. 5, 2011. http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2011/04/anonymous-attacks-sony-to-protest-ps3-hacker-lawsuit/
Anonymous. “How to Join Anonymous A Beginner’s Guide Mobile.” YouTube, 2010. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQk14FLDPZg
Bright, Peter. “Anonymous speaks: the inside story of the HBGary hack.” Ars Technica, Feb 16, 2011. http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2011/02/anonymous-speaks-the-inside-story-of-the-hbgary-hack/
Dewey, Caitlin. “Absolutely everything you need to know to understand 4chan, the Internet’s own bogeyman.” The Washington Post, Sep. 25, 2014. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-intersect/wp/2014/09/25/absolutely-everything-you-need-to-know-to-understand-4chan-the-internets-own-bogeyman/
Hern, Alex. “From Isis to Atlantic Records: five targets of Anonymous’ cyberwarfare.” The Guardian. Nov. 17, 2015. http://www.theguardian.com/technology/shortcuts/2015/nov/17/isis-anonymous-targets-cyberwarfare-hacktivists-atlantic-records
Kushner, David. “The Masked Avengers.” The New Yorker, Sep. 08, 2014. http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/09/08/masked-avengers
Mikhaylova, Galina. (2014). The “Anonymous” Movement: Hacktivism as an Emerging Form of Political Participation (Masters dissertation). https://digital.library.txstate.edu/bitstream/handle/10877/5378/MIKHAYLOVA-THESIS-2014.pdf?sequence=1
Norton, Quinn. “How Anonymous picks targets, launches attacks, and takes powerful organizations down.” Wired, Jul. 03, 2012. http://www.wired.com/2012/07/ff_anonymous/
Norton, Quinn "Anonymous 101: Introduction to the Lulz." Wired, Nov. 8, 2011. http://www.wired.com/2011/11/anonymous-101/
Norton, Quinn, “Anonymous 101 Part Deux: Moals Triumph Over Lulx”. Wired, Dec. 30, 2011, http://www.wired.com/2011/12/anonymous-101-part-deux/
Zetter, Kim. 2011. “Anonymous Hacks Security Firm Investigating It; Releases E-mail.” Wired, February 7, 2011. http://www.wired.com/2011/02/anonymous-hacks-hbgary
