Editing Hacktivism (section)

==Forms and methods==
[[File:Anarchist hackers.jpg|thumb|Hacktivist protest in the US]]
Self-proclaimed "hacktivists" often work anonymously, sometimes operating in groups while other times operating as a lone wolf with several cyber-personas all corresponding to one activist<ref name=":2" /> within the [[cyberactivism]] umbrella that has been gaining public interest and power in pop-culture. Hacktivists generally operate under apolitical ideals and express uninhibited ideas or abuse without being scrutinized by society while representing or defending themselves publicly under an anonymous identity giving them a sense of power in the [[cyberactivism]] community.<ref>https://www.crowdstrike.com/en-us/cybersecurity-101/threat-intelligence/hacktivism/</ref>

In order to carry out their operations, hacktivists might create new tools; or integrate or use a variety of software tools readily available on the Internet. One class of hacktivist activities includes increasing the accessibility of others to take politically motivated action online.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Romagna |first=Marco |last2=Leukfeldt |first2=Eric Rutger |title=Becoming a hacktivist. Examining the motivations and the processes that prompt an individual to engage in hacktivism |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/371138711_Becoming_a_hacktivist_Examining_the_motivations_and_the_processes_that_prompt_an_individual_to_engage_in_hacktivism |journal=Journal of Crime and Justice |volume=47 (1)}}</ref>

[[Repertoire of contention]] of hacktivism includes among others:

# Code: Software and websites can achieve political goals. For example, the encryption software [[Pretty Good Privacy|PGP]] can be used to secure communications; PGP's author, [[Phil Zimmermann]] said he distributed it first to the peace movement.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.philzimmermann.com/EN/news/PGP_10thAnniversary.html |title=PGP Marks 10th Anniversary |publisher=Phil Zimmermann |access-date=2010-08-23 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110514200112/http://www.philzimmermann.com/EN/news/PGP_10thAnniversary.html |archive-date=2011-05-14 }}</ref> [[Jim Warren (computer specialist)|Jim Warren]] suggests PGP's wide dissemination was in response to Senate Bill 266, authored by Senators Biden and DeConcini, which demanded that "...communications systems permit the government to obtain the plain text contents of voice, data, and other communications...".<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.contra.org/pgp/PhilZimmerman.html | title = The Persecution of Phil Zimmermann, American | publisher = Jim Warren | date = 1996-01-08 | access-date = 2011-02-01 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110513181323/http://www.contra.org/pgp/PhilZimmerman.html | archive-date = 2011-05-13 }}</ref> [[WikiLeaks]] is an example of a politically motivated website: it seeks to "keep governments open".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wikileaks.ch/ |title=WikiLeaks homepage |publisher=WikiLeaks |access-date=2011-02-01 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110131235529/http://wikileaks.ch/ |archive-date=2011-01-31 }}</ref>
# [[Mirror site|Mirroring]]: Website mirroring is used as a circumvention tool in order to bypass various censorship blocks on websites. This technique copies the contents of a censored website and disseminates it on other domains and sub-domains that are not censored.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://advocacy.globalvoicesonline.org/projects/mirroring-a-censored-wordpress-blog/ | title = Mirroring a Censored Wordpress Blog | first = Sami | last = Ben Gharbia | publisher = Global Voices Advocacy | access-date = 2011-02-09 | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110201130429/http://advocacy.globalvoicesonline.org/projects/mirroring-a-censored-wordpress-blog/ | archive-date = 2011-02-01 }}</ref> Document mirroring, similar to website mirroring, is a technique that focuses on backing up various documents and other works. [[RECAP]] is software that was written with the purpose to 'liberate US case law' and make it openly available online. The software project takes the form of distributed document collection and archival.<ref>{{cite web|title=Recap the law|url=https://www.recapthelaw.org/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130430151428/https://www.recapthelaw.org/|archive-date=2013-04-30|access-date=2013-05-20}}</ref> Major mirroring projects include initiatives such as the [[Internet Archive]] and [[Wikisource]]. 
# Anonymity: A method of speaking out to a wide audience about human rights issues, government oppression, etc. that utilizes various web tools such as [[Mailinator|free and/or disposable email accounts]], IP masking, and blogging software to preserve a high level of anonymity.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://advocacy.globalvoicesonline.org/projects/guide/ | title = Anonymous Blogging with Wordpress and Tor | first = Ethan | last = Zuckerman | publisher = Global Voices Advocacy | access-date = 2011-02-09 | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110209104115/http://advocacy.globalvoicesonline.org/projects/guide/ | archive-date = 2011-02-09 }}</ref>
# [[Doxing]]: The practice in which private and/or confidential documents and records are hacked into and made public. Hacktivists see this as a form of assured transparency, experts claim it is harassment.<ref name=":3" /> 
# [[Denial-of-service attack]]s: These attacks, commonly referred to as [[Denial-of-service attack|DoS attacks]], use large arrays of personal and public computers that hackers take control of via [[malware]] executable files usually transmitted through email attachments or website links. After taking control, these computers act like a herd of zombies, redirecting their [[network traffic]] to one website, with the intention of overloading [[Server (computing)|servers]] and taking a website offline.<ref name=":3" />
#[[Virtual sit-in]]s: Similar to DoS attacks but executed by individuals rather than software, a large number of protesters visit a targeted website and rapidly load pages to overwhelm the site with [[network traffic]] to slow the site or take it offline.<ref name=":4" />
#[[Website defacement]]s: Hackers infiltrate a web server to replace a specific web page with one of their own, usually to convey a specific message.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Romagna|first1=M.|last2=van den Hout|first2=N. J.|title=Hacktivism and Website Defacement: Motivations, Capabilities and potential Threats|journal=Proceedings of the 27th Virus Bulletin International Conference|date=October 2017|pages=41–50|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/320330579|access-date=12 May 2019}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite journal|last=Fitri|first=Nofia|date=April 2011|title=Democracy Discourses through the Internet Communication: Understanding the Hacktivism for the Global Changing|journal=Online Journal of Communication and Media Technologies|volume=1|issue=2|pages=11|doi=10.29333/ojcmt/2332|doi-access=free}}</ref>
#[[URL redirection|Website redirects]]: This method involves changing the address of a website within the server so would-be visitors of the site are redirected to a site created by the perpetrator, typically to denounce the original site.<ref name=":4" />
# [[Geo-bombing]]: A technique in which [[netizens]] add a [[geotagging|geo-tag]] while editing [[YouTube]] videos so that the location of the video can be seen in [[Google Earth]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Geo-bombing: YouTube + Google Earth · Global Voices Advocacy|url=https://advox.globalvoices.org/past-projects/advocacy-20-guide-tools-for-digital-advocacy/geo-bombing-youtube-google-earth/|access-date=2020-11-24|website=Global Voices Advocacy|language=en}}</ref>
# <span class="anchor" id="Protestware"></span>Protestware: The use of [[malware]] to promote a [[Social issue|social cause]] or [[protest]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Open source 'protestware' harms Open Source |url=https://opensource.org/blog/open-source-protestware-harms-open-source |access-date=2022-03-28 |website=opensource.org |date=24 March 2022 |language=en}}</ref> Protestware is self-inflicted by a project's maintainer in order to spread a message; most commonly in a disruptive manner. The term was popularized during the [[Russo-Ukrainian War]] after the [[peacenotwar]] [[supply chain attack]] on the [[Npm (software)|npm]] ecosystem.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Pro-Ukraine 'Protestware' Pushes Antiwar Ads, Geo-Targeted Malware – Krebs on Security |date=17 March 2022 |url=https://krebsonsecurity.com/2022/03/pro-ukraine-protestware-pushes-antiwar-ads-geo-targeted-malware/ |access-date=2022-03-28 |language=en-US}}</ref>