Hacktivism

This stub was created by Adam King.
== Overview ==
Hacktivism is the act of hacking, or breaking into a computer system, for a politically or socially motivated purpose. The individual who performs an act of hacktivism is said to be a hacktivist. Using the Internet in order to further awareness and advocacy campaigns can take form in a variety of ways, hacktivism being one of more nefarious terms.
== Definition and History ==
Hacktivism has become a more widely used term in our increasingly technological world. The roots of hacktivism began in the 1980's when activists attacked the NASA computer systems with viruses and worms to protest a shuttle that was being launched carrying radioactive plutonium. Later in the 1990's, the term hacktivism was coined by an international group called Hacktivismo. In contrast to earlier forms of this word, this group was against using virus and worm attacks as a form of activism, since they believed it violated free speech. Instead, they used Hacktivism to create tools to further free speech and privacy. 
== Examples ==
Anonymous, one of the most prominent hacktivist groups, became one of the most well-known groups in 2008. They launched a protest against the Church of Scientology to censor a video of Tom Cruise praising the church. Since this, they have launched thousands of different attacks against a variety of organizations, both privately and publicly ran. The attacks have become so common nowadays because it is relatively inexpensive and fast.
Chaos Computer Club is a group of hackers located in Europe that has been around for over thirty years. They are the largest hacker organization in Europe. This group holds events through their website and can be contacted so they are very much out in the open.
The Jester is a single American hacktivist that has his own blog. The Jester posts many blogs about hacking and hacktivism that are directed towards the average American Internet user. He claims responsibility for cyber attacks on WikiLeaks, 4chan, and many Islamic websites among others. He was named one of Time's 30 most influential people on the Internet on March 5, 2015 and is said to be one of the most powerful hackers in the world.
Today, there are hacktivism groups that promote almost any cause imaginable. However, this term is mostly used by the media, as many of those referred to by the media as "hacktivists" do not actually use that title. Much of the activism that goes on gets attributed to the large organization Anonymous, but there are a significant portion of hacktivists that claim no formal allegiance to any group. 
== Resources and Further Reading ==
The Rise of Hacktivism: A brief history about the beginnings of hacktivism and the impact that it has on the global culture today.
Hacktivism: Civil Disobedience or Cyber Crime?: A detailed reading devoted to the ongoing controversy surrounding using illegal hacking to bring light to perceived injustices. 
The Masked Avengers: An inside look at the most prominent hacktivist group, Anonymous. Including the story of the creator and the way they go about their "attacks".
Pirate culture and hacktivist mobilization: The cultural and social protocol of #WikiLeaks on Twitter: A very interesting journal about the patterns of communication and participation among hacktivists on Twitter during the WikiLeaks release.
Human Rights and Hacktivism: The Cases of WIkiLeaks and Anonymous: An academic article that takes a different look at these groups. The author makes arguments that other forms of protest are morally superior and cohere better with human rights.
== Keywords ==
Social Media, Twitter, 4chan
== Citations ==
http://journal.georgetown.edu/the-rise-of-hacktivism/
http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/definition/hacktivism
Chaos Computer Club
JESTERS COURT
Time's 30 Most Influential People on the Internet
Category:Overview
Category:Definition and History
Category:Examples
Category:Critical Conversation
Category:Keywords
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