This is the classic anonymous modus operandi: a monologue worthy of a super villain, a perceived attack on personal rights or public interest, someone wearing a Guy Fox mask, and a lot of hissing video effects and sound distortion .
But as hacktivism collectively targets Elon Musk’s new targets, the latest “expect us” threat raises the question: Who cares?
Yesterday, a video allegedly from the anonymous collective warned that there is now a joint intelligence agency targeting him:
Oh fuckhttps://t.co/f8A4baYgWU
— Peter McCormack (@PeterMcCormack) June 5, 2021
The monologue is tortuous, and pointed out that “your fans ignore these issues because they focus on the potential benefits that your project can bring to the world.” Aiming at Musk’s background as the heir to a South African mining company, he accused him of trying “The creation of a Bitcoin mining committee is rightly seen as an attempt to centralize the industry and place it under your control.”
However, what really arouses the anger of this particular group is that Musk’s recent Twitter prank may have had a negative impact on smaller investors.
“Judging from the comments on your Twitter post, the games you play on the crypto market seem to have destroyed lives. Millions of retail investors really count on their cryptocurrency gains to improve their lives,” Meng The man complained.
Hey @elonmusk, I just met Martin, he is a Lyft driver in Miami, and he told me that he lost nearly $10,000 by investing in Dogecoin-he got in because of your Twitter account. Maybe it’s time to calm down.
— Jon Rice (@JonRiceCrypto) June 4, 2021
Anonymous is not the only party who recently disputed Musk’s cynical tweets, but it’s not clear whether they can take action on it.
In recent years, the organization’s power seems to have weakened. Their peak can be said to have occurred during the Chanology project, which aims to legitimize and devalue the power of the Church of Scientology. They attacked websites, released secret information, and even sent a nearly naked man covered in pubic hair and petroleum jelly to a location in the church to vandalize. Bless you, Agent Pubitt.
In recent years, their success has become less and less, but their threats are many. Recent targets include the Nigerian government, the Minneapolis Police Department and the Thai prison system. In all cases, it is not clear which battles (if any) they successfully won.
However, the effectiveness or legitimacy of Anonymous’s efforts is almost irrelevant. Anonymity and blockchain ideology are two overlapping but ultimately separated intellectual movements, and events like this video highlight the differences between the two.
Bitcoin was founded by an anonymous individual or collective named Satoshi Nakamoto. Satoshi chose to leave his creation and unleash declarative techniques like Anonymous. Bitcoin doesn’t need anyone’s help; it is an elegantly designed network, and it will almost certainly be longer lasting than Elon Musk, and perhaps even longer than all the memories of his accomplishments.
This is how cypherpunk fights: use code, not role play. Anonymity, respect, we are fine.
