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Crime Piracy

Anonymous Takes Down DOJ, RIAA, MPA and Universal Music 649

First time accepted submitter EW87 writes "Shortly after a federal raid today brought down the file sharing service Megaupload, hackers aligned with the online collective Anonymous have shut down sites for the Department of Justice, Universal Music Group and the RIAA. 'It was in retaliation for Megaupload, as was the concurrent attack on Justice.org,' Anonymous operative Barrett Brown tells RT on Thursday afternoon."
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Anonymous Takes Down DOJ, RIAA, MPA and Universal Music

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  • by pseudorand ( 603231 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @05:48PM (#38754624)

    Justice down? Sounds like Justice is alive and well to me.

  • by godrik ( 1287354 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @05:49PM (#38754644)

    I guess the war has now begun. Taking down the department of justice is a clear start of all hostility. I am not sure I agree with them. But they have stuff in their pants!

    • by DesScorp ( 410532 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @05:51PM (#38754704) Journal

      I guess the war has now begun. Taking down the department of justice is a clear start of all hostility. I am not sure I agree with them. But they have stuff in their pants!

      And when they're in prison, they're going to have stuff in the other side.

      • good luck (Score:4, Insightful)

        by unity100 ( 970058 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @05:59PM (#38754846) Homepage Journal

        taking the immense botnets' masters and very, very elite hackers that reside in russia and china out, without world war iii.

    • Wow, they took down websites... good for them. Last time I checked, none of those organizations actually rely on those websites. Take down the DoJ site with a childish attack? Sure, go for it. But it's not like that will actually affect the day-to-day operations of the department itself.
    • by sdguero ( 1112795 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @06:17PM (#38755178)
      If I had tekn down the DOJ website I'd have stuff in my pants too. It'd be brown and stinky.
  • by chadenright ( 1344231 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @05:49PM (#38754664) Journal
    With friends like that for the cause of freedom of the internet, who needs enemies? I have to think that they just -increased- the odds of draconian legislation being passed to help contain outbreaks just like this.
    • by ackthpt ( 218170 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @05:54PM (#38754752) Homepage Journal

      With friends like that for the cause of freedom of the internet, who needs enemies? I have to think that they just -increased- the odds of draconian legislation being passed to help contain outbreaks just like this.

      Reminds me of a line from a Douglas Adams book, referencing the distant rumble of a passed storm - leaving the impression of a man muttering "and another thing", who lost an argument 20 minutes ago. Yeah, this is a pretty poor grumble, nothing to match the heroics of Wikipedia, Wired, Google, et all who took on SOPA/PIPA in a constructive manner.

      • by migla ( 1099771 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @07:11PM (#38755902)

        I'm no stranger to or opponent of hyperbole used figuratively to illustrate a point and, in fact, I think I often fail to get my message across when using it.

        But I suspect you are saying "heroics of Wikipedia, Wired, Google, et all" with a straight face...

        Not that it isn't unexpectedly great what they've all done, but for the corporations of the lot, I'm sure the impact on the bottom line is carefully thought through.

        Serendipitously, the actions of these are at the moment aligned with what is right for everyone.

        Publicly traded corporations are not heroic, nor good or evil.

        In general (as in this case) they will say and do whatever social darwinism will have their intestines percolate to the top and out of their PR-mouth.

      • by Wolfling1 ( 1808594 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @11:37PM (#38757952) Journal
        Your post made me stop and think about it for a minute. The ability to destroy the DNS so easily is clearly a weakness in the architecture of the Internet. If DoJ can do it, then we (the technical community) have clearly failed to engineer a global network resilient to single points of failure.

        Perhaps the most constructive thing we can do is re-engineer the DNS architecture so that it cannot be destroyed so easily.

        This would be a great victory of intelligence over politics - something that is way overdue.

        Perhaps some kind of Beowulf DNS Cluster arrangement. Or a RAID/striped/mirrored DNS database. One that cannot be centrally administered. In order to take down a website/DNS/Server - you need to physically shut down the server.

        Now, I have no doubt that DoJ would seek out ways to accomplish this task, but at least other countries (with more sane governments) would have the opportunity to oppose such sloppy legislation.
    • by alendit ( 1454311 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @05:59PM (#38754854)

      All those people who dare opposing unjust laws! They are just provoking an unreasonable response! The world would have been a much better place if that Rosa Parks had just sat in the back of the bus, like she was told.

    • Comment removed (Score:5, Insightful)

      by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @06:01PM (#38754888)
      Comment removed based on user account deletion
    • by bky1701 ( 979071 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @06:02PM (#38754904) Homepage
      I bet you would have complained about sit-ins in the civil rights era.
    • and really. (Score:5, Insightful)

      by unity100 ( 970058 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @06:04PM (#38754940) Homepage Journal

      you think that, if they havent done that, no crap like sopa pipa schmogga would be out ?

      there werent any such hacktivism back in 2005. and yet, they popped out the attack on network neutrality at that year. apparently they have been cooking it since 2-3 years. and also the rumors of acta starting came out that year. so, it was probably underway from a while ago, but noone knew.

      wake up. this is a war, and they treat you as their enemy. they were BENT to do these, to implement censorship, REGARDLESS of what you did.

      you havent engaged in any acts of terrorism. neither your neighbors. in fact, there hasnt been any case of domestic terrorism in the u.s. since 2001.

      and yet, habeas corpus was just invalidated with the infinite detention act ..............

      see ? it doesnt matter whether you behaved. they will do it regardless.

      hacktivism only reminds people that all is not lost. and governments and corporations are not all that powerful. in that, its something good. its like the gestapo prison air raid british did in early ww ii. it was strategically unimportant, but the deed was so courageous and so irritating to germans that it broke the air of invincibility around them and gave morale to both allies and the french resistance.

      its time for you to say 'viva la resistance !'. for you are already under occupation in america.

    • by DaKritter ( 158840 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @06:18PM (#38755200)

      No, Anonymous is right.

      SOPA meant anyone could take down anyone else's website for any or none reason.

      Now Anon shows what that would mean. For once there is a actually a point in the DDoS.

  • Well done them... (Score:5, Insightful)

    by ackthpt ( 218170 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @05:51PM (#38754702) Homepage Journal

    I'm certain the feds can back-track the traffic and find more ip addresses to servers which were compromised and home addresses which controlled them. The net isn't as loose as it once was and the more this activity happens the more tools the feds will build to track and back-track.

    Short term victory, that's all.

  • operative? (Score:5, Insightful)

    by PaulBu ( 473180 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @05:54PM (#38754748) Homepage

    Anonymous operative Barrett Brown

    Does not being Barret Brown contradicts beins Anonymous? ;)

    Paul B.

  • by future assassin ( 639396 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @05:57PM (#38754814)

    Taking down sites will do nothing but give the corrupted politicians more amo. Why not concentrate on digging up dirt con corruption and start making it public? Get some incriminating info on RIAA/MPAA/Politicians.

  • Oh the irony. (Score:5, Insightful)

    by unity100 ( 970058 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @05:58PM (#38754822) Homepage Journal

    The CITIZENS of the country who elect and send representatives to make laws for them, cannot do ANYthing against the repression those representatives rain down on them - from nullification of habeas corpus to censorship. if they do, they are pushed into 'free speech zones', or batoned down in public ............. but, those who are dubbed as 'criminals', react on their behalf with unmatched efficiency that would put the biggest picketing protest to shame....

    when things come to this point in a society, it means that that society, with everything in it, is broken beyond repair and needs a total reset.

  • Staged? (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Qbertino ( 265505 ) <moiraNO@SPAMmodparlor.com> on Thursday January 19, 2012 @05:58PM (#38754836)

    I think it's quite likely this entire thing is a staged PR stunt by the SOPA/PIPA cartell to generate a little counter-press. Call me paranoid, but It apprears to me all to convenient that something like this happens just now. At least it's a theory worth entertaining, imho.

  • Begun! (Score:4, Funny)

    by Zaatxe ( 939368 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @06:00PM (#38754858)
    Begun, the Internet War has!
  • by AdamJS ( 2466928 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @06:00PM (#38754874)

    Websites mean little compared to winning ideological battles.

  • War (Score:5, Interesting)

    by bky1701 ( 979071 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @06:00PM (#38754878) Homepage
    It's starting. Hopefully it will keep moving. We need to get this shit sorted out once and for all.

    Unfortunately, instead of the revolt that is needed over copyright, we'll probably just end up with some kids in gitmo for the rest of their lives and another SOPA/PIPA copy passed in a few months.

    Wake up, now is the time to stand up.
    • Re:War (Score:5, Interesting)

      by gerddie ( 173963 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @06:22PM (#38755260)

      Unfortunately, instead of the revolt that is needed over copyright, ...

      indeed: [gonzotimes.com]

      Intellectual Property is a myth. It is invented with the backing of the threat of force of the state. It is the idea that knowledge or information can be owned by one certain company or person. The myth is perpetuated that people who copy are pirates or thieves. Even those who file share and copy movies and music have come to call themselves pirates. The problem is that it is not piracy or theft. It is theft if I take something of yours. If I copy something of someones or my own it is simply not theft, it is copying.

  • by Sebastopol ( 189276 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @06:07PM (#38755022) Homepage

    As much as I want to see a vigilante internet group of elite white-hat hackers send a potent message, a DDoS is hardly effective. It grabs a headline or two, but in the end, does nothing.

    Too bad l0pht/CDC went legit.

    *sigh*

  • Idiocy (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Arancaytar ( 966377 ) <arancaytar.ilyaran@gmail.com> on Thursday January 19, 2012 @06:09PM (#38755060) Homepage

    Yes, taking down sharing sites is bad. But vigilante attacks at a time when the government is already itching to censor the internet are fucking silly. It's like protesting the TSA by putting bombs in your luggage.

  • by blind biker ( 1066130 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @06:15PM (#38755160) Journal

    ..but despite that, I'll be a bit less politically correct and give a little sign of appreciation: good targets, guys. MPAA, RIAA and the greatest copyrights troll of all, Universal. Good selection.

  • "internet spring" (Score:5, Insightful)

    by tekrat ( 242117 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @06:24PM (#38755298) Homepage Journal

    While the SOPA protest yesterday was effective, today's action by the DoJ was basically a big "fuck you" to due process and working within the system.

    So fine, you want a war, you got one. For every site they take down, we need to take down 5 or 10, and not just for one day, for as long as is possible.

    The time to be peaceful and work within the system is obviously over. Occupy Wall Street was nowhere near as effective as Arab Spring, and that's because we were not throwing Molotov Cocktails and shooting cops.

    Ok, we got the message. No matter how hard we try and work within the system, you will CHANGE the system to be to our disadvantage.

    So fuck you.
    Now it's war, complete with the cocktails and shootings, until things really do change.

    • by StikyPad ( 445176 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @07:34PM (#38756164) Homepage

      today's action by the DoJ was basically a big "fuck you" to due process and working within the system.

      How so? They convened a grand jury to look at the evidence, then got warrants, and now they're filing charges. That IS due process. I'm suspect about whether or not the evidence is genuine, but I haven't seen it and neither have you, so it's way too early to say whether or not this was a legitimate action.

  • Useless move (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Windwraith ( 932426 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @06:30PM (#38755370)

    What the hell, Anonymous? What damage does hacking DoJ or the RIAA/MPA sites?
    Hack iTunes, hack Netflix, hack pages that offer services whose money goes to RIAA pockets. If you shut down a page that offers nothing, what you get is nothing. (except being charged for (pretty much) terrorism without causing any significant damage to the people you want to attack).

    Anonymous should damage their SOURCES OF REVENUE, not their useless face sites.

  • by roguegramma ( 982660 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @06:35PM (#38755446) Journal

    How about arguing that the law can crack down on megaupload just fine shows the lack of necessity for SOPA and PIPA?

  • Update (Score:5, Insightful)

    by guttentag ( 313541 ) on Thursday January 19, 2012 @07:43PM (#38756266) Journal
    I see a lot of venting and ranting, but not a lot of info about what actually has or has not happened. No one seems to have noticed some of these Web sites are up and running.

    copyright.gov [copyright.gov] is up
    DOJ [justice.gov] is up
    RIAA [riaa.com] seems to be down
    MPAA [mpaa.org] is up
    UMG [universalmusic.com] is down
    BMI [bmi.com] is down

    OK, now that we've got those facts sorted out, the next question is who cares?

    This isn't like a DDOS attack against Amazon or Google. None of these organizations, government or otherwise, depend on their Web sites to transact business. Copyright.gov is an informational resource that contains reference material you can find in many other places. No one cares if it's down. Did you even know it existed before it allegedly went down? Justice.gov exists to inform the people about what the department is doing. That's it. If Anonymous wants to raise awareness about the DOJ's activities, taking their site down has the opposite effect, and does not hurt the DOJ. When was the last time you visited the MPAA or RIAA site? Is that where you're going to look to decide what movie you want to see tomorrow, or what music you're going to buy on iTunes? And UMG and BMI's businesses don't depend on their Web sites... their music is marketed and sold elsewhere.

    We've known for about 12 years now that it's really not that hard in the scheme of things to DDOS even the biggest sites on the Web. Remember the shocking 3-hour attack on Yahoo [slashdot.org] in Feb 2000? The prevailing thought then was, "If they can shut down Yahoo, they can shut down anybody. [cnet.com]" This was a legitimate concern because with its site down, Yahoo's business does not exist. But these attacks are being directed at sites where it really doesn't matter. All it does it generate a scary-sounding news headline. Some of Anonymous's other antics have some real world implications for their targets... this does not.

Keep up the good work! But please don't ask me to help.

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