Comment of the Day

Comment of the Day: The Hacktivist Distinction

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Ray Gustini 172 Views Mar 14, 2011

Is Anonymous, which Monday published a series of emails from a Bank of America subsidiary, a "hacktivist" group? We thought so. What else would you call computer-hacking activists? Credit to commenter Chrisk87 for making the case that the term really doesn't apply to Anonymous:

Anonymous really isn't a "'hacktivist' group" at all. They're not a group in the traditional sense of the word, since have no leaders or goals. They don't act cohesively, and their ops are very scattered and range from activist vigilantism to malicious internet crime.

I'd also contend that "hactivist" isn't a word so much as a copy+paste media meme.

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