The infamous hacker group Anonymous has declared war on jihadists over the Charlie Hedbo attack. Anonymous stated in a video posted on YouTube that the Islamic extremists are the “enemy of the freedom of speech” and that they will be shutting down social media sites and websites related to the terrorists, according to CNN.
The group stated in the video, “Freedom of speech and opinion is a non-negotiable thing, to tackle it is to attack democracy. Expect a massive frontal reaction from us because the struggle for the defense of those freedoms is the foundation of our movement.”
Some believe, however, that taking down the social media sites of the jihadists could make monitoring the terrorists more difficult, according to the BBC.
Anonymous is usually an enemy of authority and government. They have shut down sites related to policies they disapprove of. This includes government sites, child pornography sites, and the sites of large corporations likes PayPal, Sony, Visa, and Mastercard, according to Daily Mail. Support for the hacker group is divided. Some see the group as “hacktivists,” doing good for the world while others see the group as cyber terrorists.
Anonymous is based world-wide. Over the years, dozens have been arrested in the US, UK, Australia, the Netherlands, Spain, and Turkey.
Anonymous shows us that the wars of today, and of the future, will not only be fought with guns and bombs, they will be fought in cyberspace. It is becoming increasingly important to protect yourself online.