• Home
  • Cyber Crime
  • Cyber warfare
  • APT
  • Data Breach
  • Deep Web
  • Digital ID
  • Hacking
  • Hacktivism
  • Intelligence
  • Internet of Things
  • Laws and regulations
  • Malware
  • Mobile
  • Reports
  • Security
  • Social Networks
  • Terrorism
  • ICS-SCADA
  • POLICIES
  • Contact me
MUST READ

IT Worker arrested for selling access in $100M PIX cyber heist

 | 

New Batavia spyware targets Russian industrial enterprises

 | 

Taiwan flags security risks in popular Chinese apps after official probe

 | 

U.S. CISA adds Google Chromium V8 flaw to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog

 | 

Hunters International ransomware gang shuts down and offers free decryption keys to all victims

 | 

SECURITY AFFAIRS MALWARE NEWSLETTER ROUND 52

 | 

Security Affairs newsletter Round 531 by Pierluigi Paganini – INTERNATIONAL EDITION

 | 

North Korea-linked threat actors spread macOS NimDoor malware via fake Zoom updates

 | 

Critical Sudo bugs expose major Linux distros to local Root exploits

 | 

Google fined $314M for misusing idle Android users' data

 | 

A flaw in Catwatchful spyware exposed logins of +62,000 users

 | 

China-linked group Houken hit French organizations using zero-days

 | 

Cybercriminals Target Brazil: 248,725 Exposed in CIEE One Data Breach

 | 

Europol shuts down Archetyp Market, longest-running dark web drug marketplace

 | 

Kelly Benefits data breach has impacted 550,000 people, and the situation continues to worsen as the investigation progresses

 | 

Cisco removed the backdoor account from its Unified Communications Manager

 | 

U.S. Sanctions Russia's Aeza Group for aiding crooks with bulletproof hosting

 | 

Qantas confirms customer data breach amid Scattered Spider attacks

 | 

CVE-2025-6554 is the fourth Chrome zero-day patched by Google in 2025

 | 

U.S. CISA adds TeleMessage TM SGNL flaws to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog

 | 
  • Home
  • Cyber Crime
  • Cyber warfare
  • APT
  • Data Breach
  • Deep Web
  • Digital ID
  • Hacking
  • Hacktivism
  • Intelligence
  • Internet of Things
  • Laws and regulations
  • Malware
  • Mobile
  • Reports
  • Security
  • Social Networks
  • Terrorism
  • ICS-SCADA
  • POLICIES
  • Contact me
  • Home
  • Cyber warfare
  • Security
  • Anonymous, it could become a cyber weapon

Anonymous, it could become a cyber weapon

Pierluigi Paganini February 10, 2012

The group of hacktivist known as Anonymous is considered as the uncontrollable variable in the cyber space capable of surprising us with striking operations worthy of the most skilled cyber army.
Precisely this is the point, are we sure that the group’s operations are so difficult to control or predict?

Are we able to mitigate the risks of exposure?

We consider that the group has as its cornerstone the recruitment of common people through social media to engage in protests.
Reflecting well we are facing with a powerful machine that moves, however, announcing his arrival and producing a loud noise. This undoubtedly provides two advantages:

  1. Knowledge of group policies.
  2. Ability to operate covert actions against strategic objectives by exploiting the group’s operations as a diversionary action.

Governments and law enforcement agencies understood the offensive potential of the group have accelerated the implementation of measures to control the main channels of communication adopted by hacktivist. Monitoring systems increasingly powerful have been implemented and are being acquired, they are powerful tool able to correlate events and activities within main social media and search engines.

The battle is undoubtedly difficult, history suggests that ideologies are not fought with arrests and other highly restrictive measures, this leaves me to believe that we will hear a long talk about Anonymous, no longer tied to a group of people but to a new form of social expression.
My thought is shared in many environments, and many experts are convinced that the phenomenon Anonymous goes analyzed from another perspective in some ways innovative.
Is it possible to use the Group and its function as a cyber weapon? 
How is it possible?

It is widely believed that it should be carried out intelligence operations aimed at infiltrating the system, become an integral part to affect its operations. Similar operations could benefit the needs of the group has to involve a critical mass of people for their attacks, unthinkable not to leave traces. In a hypothetical phase two does not makes sense to destroy it. It could be more profitable influence their actions against strategic objectives for cyber operations or planning military operations behind a coverage diversionary action conducted by groups like Anonymous.
Many consider this approach impractical, while feeling extremely efficient as cyber weapon the model of social protest through new media. At this point there may be fake cells that hacktivists recruiting ordinary people directing attacks against institutions and hostile governments.

The group has always been driven by purely political motives, and for this reason, imagining it for strategic planning of operations could destabilize an opponent government exaggerates the tone of the internal political debate. We found in more than one occasion how dangerous it can be a breath of wind of protest through the new social media. The Arab spring as the elections in Russia are proof of what can be destabilizing for a political context a protest designed a in cyber space. The involvement, of considerable masses could be according specific requirements.
What we really know regarding the genesis of these phenomena that we see just at the sensational climax?

Assumed the possibility of using groups like Anonymous, or rather its model of protest, as a cyber weapon who might be interested in its “recruitment” and what are related risks?
Obviously the idea is very appealing to all governments that tend to conceive cyber definitely aggressive strategies, but that need guarantee a low media exposure. For this reason no doubt exclude government has always openly hostile as Iran, Syria living in the obsession of having to show the world their technical skills. Rule out also governments as Russian and Chinese for two reasons, first for the possibility of using satellite nations like Iran and North Korea for its cyber strategies, second the questionable management of internet, at the edge of censorship, practiced in these countries represents a serious obstacle to the growth and conditioning of movements such as that discussed.

Its obvious that the states in which these groups are more active as the U.S. and Europe might those more interested and motivated in groups hacktivist approach, an approach that would affect cyber operations without having to face the consent of the international community.
How to approach the dangerous groups and with what risks? Intelligence operations and study of the phenomenon are preparatory to the approach, but with regard to the possibility of infiltrating the group of course this could be achieved by conditioning, for example through financial compensation and other benefits, the medium and high level representatives of the groups, those people that define the strategies of protest.
The risks are related to the negotiation with unstable and mutable organizations that we know too little, but history teaches that such agreements are possible and have occurred in the past such as between states and criminal organizations.

Pierluigi Paganini

 


facebook linkedin twitter

Anonymous Botnets Content filtering Critical infrastructures cyber Cyber Crime cyber weapon cyberwarfare Espionage Facebook Google Hackers Hacking Hacktivism hacktivists Intelligence Investigation Large scale infiltration monitoring systems search engines socia media social networks Social Networks ; Social Network Security ; Large-scale Infiltration ; Socialbots ; Botnets

you might also like

Pierluigi Paganini July 08, 2025
IT Worker arrested for selling access in $100M PIX cyber heist
Read more
Pierluigi Paganini July 07, 2025
Taiwan flags security risks in popular Chinese apps after official probe
Read more

leave a comment

newsletter

Subscribe to my email list and stay
up-to-date!

    recent articles

    IT Worker arrested for selling access in $100M PIX cyber heist

    Cyber Crime / July 08, 2025

    New Batavia spyware targets Russian industrial enterprises

    Uncategorized / July 07, 2025

    Taiwan flags security risks in popular Chinese apps after official probe

    Security / July 07, 2025

    U.S. CISA adds Google Chromium V8 flaw to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog

    Hacking / July 07, 2025

    Hunters International ransomware gang shuts down and offers free decryption keys to all victims

    Cyber Crime / July 06, 2025

    To contact me write an email to:

    Pierluigi Paganini :
    pierluigi.paganini@securityaffairs.co

    LEARN MORE

    QUICK LINKS

    • Home
    • Cyber Crime
    • Cyber warfare
    • APT
    • Data Breach
    • Deep Web
    • Digital ID
    • Hacking
    • Hacktivism
    • Intelligence
    • Internet of Things
    • Laws and regulations
    • Malware
    • Mobile
    • Reports
    • Security
    • Social Networks
    • Terrorism
    • ICS-SCADA
    • POLICIES
    • Contact me

    Copyright@securityaffairs 2024

    We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.
    Cookie SettingsAccept All
    Manage consent

    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities...
    Necessary
    Always Enabled
    Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
    Non-necessary
    Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
    SAVE & ACCEPT