This month's episode of The Dark Dive tackles the thorny issue of hacktivism: hackers that are driven by ideological - rather than financial - motivations.

Threat intelligence experts Luke Donovan and Vlad join the podcast to discuss how hacktivism has evolved from the "digital utopia" era, to the anti-establishment antics of Anonymous, to the state-aligned activities we observe today.

Along the way, we cover the defining tenets of modern day hacktivist groups, including their targets, tactics, and use of Telegram to promote their attacks and causes. We also discuss how hacktivism has escalated from acts of protest and defacement to more sophisticated attacks, including the use of ransomware.

Further reading:

- "Hacking in the Name Of", article on the history of hacktivism authored by Diana Selck-Paulsson in The Hacker News (discussed at 04:30 ): https://thehackernews.com/expert-insights/2025/02/hacking-in-name-of.html

- "Encrypted Communication Apps: From Telegram to EncroChat" our podcast episode on Telegram and other messaging apps (discussed at 25:27 ): https://slcyber.io/podcasts/encrypted-communication-apps-from-telegram-to-encrochat/

- "The Rise of the Hacktivist Supergroup", previously published threat intelligence from Vlad on hacktivist group team-ups (discussed at 36:45 ): https://techinformed.com/the-rise-of-the-hacktivist-supergroup/

Want to find out more or have a suggestion for future podcast episodes?

Email: thedarkdive@slcyber.io

Website: www.slcyber.io

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/searchlight-cyber