Expect Anonymous?

Cyberspace is unrestricted – anyone can join cyberspace anytime and anywhere. An easily accessible window for communication and information, cyberspace has become a dominating factor in people’s lives. Yet, popularity and universality of internet has also made cyberspace a target for crime. While, in the past, cybercrime centered on the issue of individual privacy; nowadays, cybersecurity of nations is seeing itself increasingly threatened. Concerned with this threat, in 2011, the United Nations’ specialized agency, International Telecommunication Union (ITU), established International Multilateral Partnership Against Cyber Threats (IMPACT) to provide cybersecurity assistance and support to ITU 193 member countries.

It is globally acknowledged that cyber attacks on national networks or websites are harmful and therefore, should be prevented. However, there is a group of people who shed light on different aspects of understanding the nature of cybersecurity. Considered as hacktivists (defined as “computer hackers whose activity is aimed at promoting a social or political cause,” the word is the combination of “hacker” and “activist”), they are Anonymous who acts with slogans: “Knowledge is free. We are Anonymous. We are legion. We do not forgive. We do not forget. Expect us.”

Anonymous was formed in 2003 on the 4chan, an imageboard website in which people anonymously posted photographs and discussed about animations. In the beginning, the activity of Anonymous was primarily focused on entertainment, for instance, hijacking internet destinations for pranks. The Guardian once described this community as “lunatic, juvenile … brilliant, ridiculous, and alarming.”

However, as Anonymous gained momentum, it began to expand its focus to controversial social and political issue. The first movement through which Anonymous publicly revealed itself was Project Chanology that was launched in 2008. Criticizing the Church of Scientology for “misinformation, suppression of dissent, litigious nature,” Anonymous launched distributed-denial-of-service (DDos) attacks against the church’s websites and even physically showed up at the church’s events to protest.

Members of Anonymous are referred to as “Anons,” as individuals wearing Guy Fawks masks in the public as a symbol of resistance. The membership of Anonymous is open to any individual. One Anon said, “there is no secret passcode,” “anyone can join and anyone can come on the network and watch or be a part of it.” Moreover, unlike any other movement or organization, Anonymous does not have vertical chain of command – everyone is equal and free as a member of Anonymous. One scholar describes the Anonymous as “an internet gathering” with “a very loose and decentralized command structure that operates on ideas rather than directives.” This very well reflects the nature of internet – free and open space operated on the basis of individual commitment that one is responsible for

For several years, Anonymous has gradually expanded its operations scope. The activities in the 2010s were especially prominent. In 2010, Anonymous launched Operation Payback, protesting against U.S. politicians’ discouragement to not use WikiLeaks which was the channel for Anonymous to receive donations through PayPal, Visa, and Mastercard. WikiLeaks lost its ability to receive donations and Anonymous launched DDos attack against PayPal, slowing down the server for an hour.

Over the course of 2011, Anonymous mounted attacks against the official websites of Egypt, Libya, and Tunisia in support of Arab Spring movement against dictatorial regimes. In the same year, Anonymous helped spreading Occupy Wall Street movement across the United States and in London. In 2013, Anonymous launched “Operation Free Korea,” urging Kim Jong-Un to resign. Insisting that North Korea should grant “uncensored internet access” to its citizens, the Anonymous released 15,000 usernames and passwords for the government’s web services.

This year, in 2014, Anonymous engaged itself more in controversial international issues. In July, launching Operation Save Gaza, Anonymous unleashed attack on Israeli websites. In September, it declared ‘full-scale cyber war’ against the Islamic State, saying that the war is launched for two reasons – first, to let public understand the urgency of the situation in Iraq and second, to inform the public that IS does not represent the Islamic religion. Anonymous also declared war against Hong Kong government in October, supporting Hong Kong citizens’ fight against democracy.  Anonymous warned that “attacking protesters will result in releasing personal information of all Hong Kong government officials.”

Despite Anonymous’ seemingly good-intentions, the reaction of many international actors to Anonymous’ cyber warfare has not been very positive. The Chinese government, after the announcement of Operation Hong Kong, openly criticized Anonymous. At the same time, Chinese government emphasized that China is also the victim of cyberattack. In addition, the general in charge of the United States Cyber Command and the director of the National Security Agency also warned that “the hacking group Anonymous could have the ability within the next year or two to bring about a limited power outage through a cyberattack.” In fact, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has been actively arresting members of Anonymous for the past few years, stating that the Anonymous has illegally attacked numerous U.S. companies and government agencies, stealing data and crashing websites.

The ‘victims’ of Anonymous attacks repeatedly claimed that any attack or movement carried out by Anonymous is illegal, and thus, a legal ground exists for arresting the Anons. Yet, the investigations only take place when the governments perceive that the operations threaten established order. In other words, the nations are only acting for their national interests. Although it may be incorrect to argue that the activity of Anonymous must be tolerated in any circumstance despite its illegality, the governments themselves must also consider that Anonymous themselves is not an illegal identity that intends to threaten the world peace. Both Anonymous and national governments must make compromises to reach a middle ground.

The activities of Anonymous seem to align with much of the world’s ideal. It initiates and advocates movement that is based on the notion of internet freedom, specifically, “the right to spread information” and “the right to share with one another.” To a certain extent, the Anonymous can be credited for creating a new medium in which people can think and act freely, without being censored. As one scholar writes, “the Anonymous demonstrates one of the new core aspects of power in a networked, democratic society: individuals are vastly more effective and less susceptible to manipulation, control, and suppression by traditional sources of power than they were even a decade ago.”