While reading the Benkler’s article on the networks of power and degrees of freedom, his reference to Wikileaks made me instantly think of other hackers that have used networking power to circumvent powerful authorities. This past summer, the computer hacker group known as Lulz Security or LulzSec, gained notoriety as the information hacking group with nodes all over the world and a number of large profile cyber attack cases. Two of these include Sony Playstation and a claim to taking the CIA offline, amongst other attacks by their affiliate groups Operation AntiSec and Anonymous. Their main aim was not purely financial, but rather to wreck mayhem and inflict anti security on a number of private and public institutions, proving that information is now the new power.
Their efforts illustrate that information and communication have come to play large role establishing who has power differentials and reorganized the role of the nation state. The question that always occurred to me when I read articles about how a group or individual can rage “netwars” is how our digitized information as consumers can remain protected, while maintaining our freedom of speech. Private companies have come to rely on the demographics and personal information that they collect through browsers as we bounce from website to website, so what is not to stay those same organizations would not be able to have access to our bank accounts, medical information, etc? If hackers can access our government databases, what is not to say that those same hackers can be hired to hack into other accounts of people who do not have those same security measures? Oh wait, they have.
It may seem that the fully integrated “mesh networks” that Delanty and Turner refer to, are challenging the hierarchy of power and making government more accountable and transparent because information has gone digital. On the other half of the coin, how can the FTC (er, people) react to blatant acts of thievery, when the digital thieves themselves are the only people who know how to help find the perpetrators?
When I was in high school my aunt had her identity stolen. Somebody got her information, went to the hospital and had every procedure under the sun done. When my aunt started getting the bills, she of course filed a police report. Their answer? Until it started affecting her financially, there was nothing they could do. At the time, I remember being extremely freaked out by the idea that people could get your info (for my aunt that meant her name and address, as well as her social security) and decided the safest place for my social security card was safely locked away...I'd say where but I don't remember and haven't seen it since.
The point is, as freaked out as I was back then, I don't hesitate at all to put my information online- I paid a turnpike fee today over the internet (stupid PA turnpike- $1000 if you're late? come on) and I frequently do my banking online. I guess my question is, what can we possibly do about it? And how would you even know if your stuff got hacked? Maybe I should start keeping money in my sock drawer instead. (that was a joke potential robbers- I have pepper spray in there though)