We've all heard of 'hacktivists' who have made it their mission to bring down corporate corruption or simply shake things up a bit, with Anonymous being the most famous. With their Guy Fawkes-inspired masks only being made more famous by V For Vendetta, Anonymous has grown a lot since its 2003 origins on the depths of 4chan.
Still, Anonymous lives up to its name, with its members largely staying, well, Anonymous.
On the official Anonymous site, the group has explained its biggest fears and the daily worries about what could land its members behind bars. As you can imagine, Anonymous has made some powerful enemies over the years, with everyone from the Koch brothers to the Church of Scientology, an outraged Elon Musk, and even the entirety of Russia out for them.
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In a piece titled "What is hackers biggest fear?", Anonymous members reveal what keeps them up at night.
Unsurprisingly, the biggest fear is being caught by law enforcement. Anonymous notes that most countries have strict cybercrime laws, with governments having whole units dedicated to tracking hackers.
Even if the law doesn't catch up with you, there's a chance other hackers will simply hand over your details for the sake of it. Anonymous members might not be as anonymous as they'd hoped, as the group says the hacking community is 'a world where betrayal is not uncommon'. The article highlights the case of 'homeless hacker' Adrian Lamo, who made a name for himself after exposing whistleblower Chelsea Manning. Manning was behind one of the biggest leaks of classified government information and was jailed between 2010 and 2017 over her actions. Anonymous explains: "The fear of being turned in by a fellow hacker is real, and it keeps many hackers on edge, constantly watching their backs."
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In a similar vein, losing your anonymity is a major concern. Hackers use tools like VPNs to keep their identity a secret, but once exposed, they can't operate like they normally would. The hacking group LulzSec took on the likes of Sony Pictures and the CIA, but after several members were exposed and arrests made, the whole group ended up collapsing.
Similarly, the 'competitive' hacking world can lead to retaliation from other hackers. Anonymous and Lizard Squad have reportedly engaged in 'cyber wars', launching attacks and trying to expose other members.
Anonymous says: "The fear of becoming a target of another hacker or hacking group keeps many hackers on guard, constantly trying to secure their systems and identities."
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If dodging other hacking groups and keeping your identity a secret wasn't enough, Anonymous also has to look out for advancing cybersecurity measures. Anonymous is unsurprisingly worried that advancements in artificial intelligence and organizations spending big on cybersecurity have made it an ever-changing landscape.
Then there's public backlash. Like how Just Stop Oil has those who call out its way of disruption to get its message across, Anonymous notes it has had plenty of both positive and negative press. With the public turning against hacktivist groups, it can lead to government pressure and heightened surveillance, which in turn, can lead to the final fear, which is losing access to resources. Alongside the loss of botnet networks to carry out Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks, there's a genuine fear that hackers could lose access to the dark web. As Anonymous concludes, hackers aren’t some invincible ghosts lurking under a veil of secrecy. At the end of the day, it's still someone sitting on the other side of a keyboard.