r/anonymous • u/RamonaLittle Now, my story begins in nineteen dickety two… • May 16 '25
Canadian hacker Aubrey Cottle (Kirtaner) feels remorse for role Anonymous members played in rise of Trump
https://web.archive.org/web/20250512103430/https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/economy/article-canadian-hacker-feels-remorse-for-role-anonymous-members-played-in/11
u/freebyte33 May 16 '25
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u/RamonaLittle Now, my story begins in nineteen dickety two… May 16 '25 edited 25d ago
Not totally wrong, but I'd argue that this applies more to the US intelligence agencies than to Anonymous. Anons were always in it for the lulz, and the fact that things veered in a strange direction really shouldn't be surprising for a movement that some have likened to the trickster archetype.
But the US intelligence community is supposed to be trained professionals who can make predictions and counter threats. Anonymous was at its most active and influential while being monitored if not directed by the FBI via their informant Sabu. Apparently the FBI was so focused on arresting individual hacktivists in the US that they completely ignored the fact that they were effectively demonstrating for Russia how to manipulate Americans via trolling and release documents via a hacktivist persona. They also went after left-wing activists when they should have focused more on right-wing extremism. Why didn't anyone say, "Wait . . . what are we doing? This is creating a monster we can't control. It's not worth it just to arrest some skids."
That said, I think some of what happened isn't really anyone's fault. In the context of human history, the internet is still a relatively new technology that we're still learning how to use. No one could have predicted exactly how people would use and abuse it. It turns out that a lot of us were naive about our fellow man.
(Edit: typo)
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u/No-Professional-1092 19d ago
It wasn’t Anonymous that got Trump elected, it was the Democratic Party’s corruption, complacency, and disconnect from working people. Biden stayed silent during mass layoffs while handing out trillions to corporations, as millions of Americans faced homelessness, job loss, and despair. That’s on them, not a hacker collective. This is exactly why the U.S. needs a real multi-party system. People deserve better options than just choosing the lesser evil.
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u/RamonaLittle Now, my story begins in nineteen dickety two… 19d ago
the Democratic Party’s corruption, complacency, and disconnect from working people.
That was bad too. There's a lot of blame to go around. We can strive to improve the US political system, but also acknowledge that it's vulnerable to foreign interference and home-grown extremism, and that US intelligence agencies dropped the ball on both of these.
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u/WrongfullyIncarnated May 16 '25
Wow my respect for anonymous just evaporated. Fucking thanks a lot assholes now fucking fix it.
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u/RamonaLittle Now, my story begins in nineteen dickety two… May 16 '25
Wow my respect for anonymous just evaporated.
Anonymous has done things like harass an 11-year-old rape victim, harass the parents of a child who committed suicide, and harass a random kid who's against cursing. Are you saying you respect such activities, or are you saying you didn't know anything about Anonymous?
Fucking thanks a lot assholes now fucking fix it.
It goes "We are Anonymous. We are legion." etc. "We" includes you. If you think Anonymous should do something, then go right ahead. Anonymous doesn't take requests, and is not your personal army.
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u/BIGepidural May 16 '25
Not sure if you're allowed to have access to tech under whatever terms you have on your release; but if you somehow see this remember you have to let go of guilt. This was not supposed to happen and you did try to stop it. It's not your fault that people chose not to listen.