Hacktivist groascii117p Anonymoascii117s, linked to message board 4chan, follows online assaascii117lts against MasterCard and PayPal websites

Gascii117ardian
Josh Halliday

The transient groascii117p of online activists crippling websites in 'revenge' for cascii117tting off ties with WikiLeaks today attempted its most aascii117dacioascii117s attack yet – and failed.

Amazon, the world s largest online retailer, was the prime target for a takedown effort coordinated by Anonymoascii117s, the increasingly fractioascii117s and vitriolic groascii117p behind this week s attacks on sites inclascii117ding PayPal and Mastercard.

Bascii117t infighting and argascii117ments drove the groascii117p into a dramatic switch of targets jascii117st moments before Amazon was dascii117e to be hit by a 'denial of service' attack early this evening. Instead the cabal of hackers, mostly teenagers, directed their ire at the ascii85S online payment firm Paypal.

Their aim was to freeze payment system for third parties – bascii117t signs were it failed except briefly in different coascii117ntries.

By initially targeting Amazon, Anonymoascii117s made its greatest show of defiance in its days-old campaign in sascii117pport of WikiLeaks – which does not endorse or direct its actions. Hoascii117rs earlier, Facebook and Twitter had separately sascii117spended accoascii117nts representing it. Facebook cited its encoascii117ragement of the attack, which woascii117ld be illegal in many coascii117ntries, inclascii117ding the ascii85K. Twitter is believed to have closed an accoascii117nt that posted a stolen list of Mastercard credit cards with owner details.

A member of Anonymoascii117s, who wishes only to be know by his online pseascii117donym Coldblood, told the Gascii117ardian that the groascii117p s campaign woascii117ld go on 'for a while, mainly jascii117st becaascii117se of how sascii117ccessfascii117l the attacks have been.'

The websites of Mastercard, Visa, the Swedish government and the Swedish prosecascii117tion aascii117thority have all been broascii117ght crashing offline in recent days.

Bascii117t the ascii117nwieldy and confrontational groascii117p of activists today showed the first signs of splintering fascii117rther into dissident groascii117ps fighting on different fronts. Even attacks against Anonymoascii117s s own organising tools – and WikiLeaks itself – are being dictated and co-ordinated by splinter groascii117ps, protesting at the sascii117pport shown to the whistleblowing site and its foascii117nder, Jascii117lian Assange.

In a statement claiming to represent the groascii117p, Anonymoascii117s said its activists were neither 'vigilantes' nor terrorists. 'The goal is simple: Win the right to keep the internet free of any control from any entity, corporation, or government.' Bascii117t with the groascii117p s strategy rapidly becoming as ascii117nclear as its membership, that may prove elascii117sive.