Hacktivism and other short stories (and the list FAQ)

["Grugnog" <grugnog@tao.ca>]

[: hacktivism :]

Hi all,

First of all: Welcome to the Hacktivism list!

I initiated this because there was some discussion on 'hacktivism' going
last year on on the Nettime, DAMN-D and tao-org lists (and probably others
too). Much of this was being crossposted, and it became clear that where
wasn't really a suitable list for the discussion to move onto.

In addition to this, I personally think that there is a need for a better
understanding of what 'hacktivism' means (as a word and in a
tactical, ethical and practical sense) - I certainly don't claim to know
myself! I do however think that some of the techniques that claim to be (or
have been claimed to be) examples of hacktivism have been ill-convieved or
applied, whilst others have been inspirational and creative.

When discussing the possibility of a list with others at Tao, it was agreed
that, as we have enough security issues as it is it would be best
if we could _avoid_ using the list to discuss actual exploits and hacking
techniques. What I mean by this is discussing how to use ftp-bounce attacks
and so on, and actually organising hacking attampts (which would be pretty
dumb to do publicly anyway!). What this this includes and doesn't include is
obviously still quite fuzzy, and open to debate.

News of people using these exploits (such as Ricardo Dominguez post) is
fine, as would be an announcement of the action, as is discussion is it's
tactical effectiveness and so on. As I mention in the FAQ - I don't intend
to censor this list at all, and if for the reason explained above, or for
plain old legal reasons, the list provider, or their provider (or anyone
else!) forces us to restrict the types of messages posted to the list (which
I don't invisage them doing) then I will try and make space available for
the material elsewhere.

I would eventually, once we have understood it better (in the collective
sense) like to bring together some of the material, to make some
informational web pages, and perhaps a hacktivism FAQ. I am in the process
of investigating a list archiving mechanism, and a domain (like
hacktivism.tao.ca) for the web pages. If anyone would like to help with the
list admin, or work on material for the web site please go ahead and let me
know and I can put it online, link to it or get you a way of uploading it
yourself.

Whilst on the topic of FAQs, I have included in this e-mail the list-FAQ, to
answer some anticipated list-admin questions. I will post this to the list
every month or so, so people are reminded, and so it can be modified and
kept up to date. This only coverers some very basic
questions, such as subscribing, unsubscribing, what the list is for, what
the list is not for, replying off list, spam, hoaxes. Remember that the term
itself is quite new, and everyone will have different ideas about what it
means - so try and keep the debate civil if possible ;)

Please post you ideas, questions, thoughts, rants, news, analysis and
anything else related to hacktivism to the list, and we can hopefully get
this list moving!

- Grug



            Hacktivism list FAQ (Version 0.1)
                Grugnog <grugnog@tao.ca>

    The latest edition of this FAQ can always be retrieved from:

    http://www.tao.ca/~grugnog/hacktivism/list-faq.txt

Changes: none (first edition)

------------------------------

Subject: 1. Introduction and Intent

This FAQ aims to answer some of the most popular frequently asked
questions about the Hacktivism e-mail list. It doesn't attempt to answer
questions on hacktivism, just the e-mail list.

------------------------------

Subject: 2. Table of Contents

        1. Introduction and Intent
        2. Table of Contents
        3. What is the Hacktivism list?
        4. How do I unsubscribe?
        5. How do I subscribe?
        6. What should I post to the list?
        7. What should I not post to the list?
        8. What messages should I not bother replying to?
        9. What is spam, and how do I combat it?

------------------------------

Subject: 3. What is the Hacktivism list?

The Hacktivism e-mail list is for posting news or analysis about
hacktivism and for discussion possibly leading to a better understanding
of what 'hacktivism' means (as a word and in a tactical, ethical and
practical sense).
This statement will change as the list develops.
To send messages to the list simply address them to hacktivism@tao.ca

------------------------------

Subject: 4. How do I unsubscribe?

To remove yourself from the e-mail list, and stop getting messages from it
you have to unsubscribe. There are two ways of doing this:

1: You can unsubscribe by sending a mail to
hacktivism-request@lists.tao.ca with no subject line and the command
"unsubscribe" in the main body (without the quotes).
Tips:
* Don't send unsubscribe requests to the main list - this is infuriating
for everyone else on the list, and won't get you unsubscribed any faster.
* Make sure you send messages in plain text only, and you turn off your
signatures - check your e-mail options.
* Don't include your e-mail address after the command. Make sure you are
using the same e-mail address you subscribed from.
* Check both of them again, and if it still doesn't work them e-mail me
(grugnog@tao.ca) and I will unsubscribe you manually.

2: You can also unsubscribe by going to the web site
<http://lists.tao.ca/> and following the instructions. This is probably
the quickest and easiest way to unsubscribe for most people.

------------------------------

Subject: 5. How do I subscribe?

If you want to join the list, you need to subscribe. There are two ways of
doing this:

1: You can subscribe by sending a mail to hacktivism-request@lists.tao.ca
with no subject line and the command "subscribe" in the main body
(without the quotes).
Tips:
* Make sure you send messages in plain text only, and you turn off your
signatures - check your e-mail options.
* Don't include your e-mail address after the command. Make sure you are
using the same e-mail address you subscribed from.

2: You can also subscribe by going to the web site
<http://lists.tao.ca/> and following the instructions. This is probably
the quickest and easiest way to subscribe for most people.

------------------------------

Subject: 6. What should I post to the list?

Do post:
* News on hacktivism
* Your views on what hacktivism is, and any ethical, tactical or practical
  issues that come to mind
* Replies to any of the above posts!
This list will change as the list culture develops.

------------------------------

Subject: 7. What shouldn't I post to the list?

Don't post:
* Unsubscribe requests (see above)
* Spam (see below)
* Blatantly off-topic material (I won't try and define this for now)
* Material which will attract unneccesary attention to yourself, others or
  the list providers from the authorities, such as specific hacking
  techniques, or details of illegal project organisation.
* Flames: try and keep debate reasonably calm, please don't start flame
  wars! If you do, please consider take taking them off list!
* Messages people can't read. Try and avoid messages in HTML or messages
  with attachments. Plain text rules!
This list will change as the list culture develops.

I refuse to censor this list in any way. If the list provider (or their
provider, ect) forces removal of any information I will endevour to ensure
it is available elsewhere on the net.

------------------------------

Subject: 8. What messages should I not bother replying to?

Don't bother replying to:
* Unsubscribe requests (see above)
* Spam (see below)
* Blatant flames
* Peoples replies to any of the above!

If people reply to any of these, or the replies to any of these (ect) it
merely increases the volume of the list - creating a chain reaction, but
rarely solves the problems! If you have to reply, please think about
replying off list.

------------------------------

Subject: 9. What is spam, and how do I combat it?

Spam is 'unsolicited commercial e-mail', and can occasionally get postedto
e-mail lists. The main thing is not to reply to it (even if it says send a
'REMOVE' to get off the list) - all this does is confirms your e-mail
address. Beyond that you can either ignore it, or report the spammer to
their ISP: for more information see <http://spam.abuse.net/>



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[: http://www.tao.ca/~grugnog/hacktivism/ :]