Stories related to hacking and other types of nefarious activity have dominated the technology landscape these past few years. Not all of these hacks are performed by criminals, though, as the Anonymous collective has been doing some “social justice” in this regard. Its latest venture involved shutting down several neo-Nazi websites. This war has gone on for quite some time now and is far from over.
Anonymous Strikes Another big Blow
While it is difficult to justify actions by any group of hackers right now, Anonymous has made more positive headlines in this regard than any other collective so far. It is not a threat to specific countries, but mainly aims to fight against injustice wherever it occurs. It’s a noble gesture, although not everyone will appreciate its method of attack. That is only to be expected, mind you, as hacking is and remains a criminal activity first and foremost. Governments all over the world have no love lost for Anonymous in this regard.
In their latest campaign, various Anonymous hackers have successfully taken down over a dozen neo-Nazi websites. There have been quite a few incidents across the United States over the years involving racism, neo-Nazi activity, and the like. Although it should be up to law enforcement agencies to respond in this regard, they are bound by very strict laws which need to be adhered to. Hacker collectives such as Anonymous have their own sets of rules, and they couldn’t care less about what any government or law enforcement agency thinks.
In a way, this gives Anonymous free reign over how it tackles problems found in our society today. So far, it has mainly done so by shutting down specific websites, although it remains to be seen what its future plans may be. The latest attack involving several neo-Nazi websites is seemingly harmless in the grand scheme of things, but it is still a problem for the affected users. Everyone is entitled to their own beliefs, even if the majority of the world doesn’t agree with them whatsoever.
It is certainly true that neo-Nazis – especially in the United States – tend to cause major uproar at times. There is a big difference between shutting down websites and causing physical harm to people who do not share your beliefs. In this regard, the actions taken by Anonymous can be somewhat justified, and shutting down several neo-Nazi “online hangouts” may have been a just decision. Things like this are always subject to interpretation, of course.
Anonymous will continue to analyze potential targets associated with domestic terrorism. White supremacist acts are of particular concern to the hacker collective, mainly because this divide between races should have ended many years ago. Unfortunately, it is still a very real problem in 2017. Rest assured we will see a few more of these attacks in the future, assuming these neo-Nazi organizations continue to cause havoc in one way or another.
Indeed, it is not the first time Anonymous has successfully taken down major websites. In August of this year, hackers took down the Charlottesville city website. It is evident there is a lot of injustice in this world in need of addressing. Traditional approaches aren’t always sufficient or even possible to begin with. Hacking may not necessarily be the best method out there, but it certainly gets a point across. Rest assured there will be more of these stories in the years to come.
