electrohippies logo

the electrohippies collective Project

Publications Archive

goto electrohippies archivemain index »»


Over the time in which were were actively campaigning we produced various reports and publications related to our work. This page provides an index to our work spanning the period 1999 to 2006.


On-site PDF file iconWTO Action Press Release, electrohippie collective, November 1999
"Cyber-activists strike at the World Trade Organisation's Seattle Conference": Internet activism makes it's first public outing from the Britain TODAY. A group of environmental activists, computer programmers and Internet specialists will, for the next 4 days, run a 'virtual action' dedicated to disrupting or even closing the World Trade Organisations (WTO's) websites.
On-site HTML file iconClient-side Distributed Denial-of-Service: Valid campaign tactic or terrorist act?, electrohippies Occasional Paper No.1, February 2000
Recent actions on the Internet against e-commerce sites are not a matter of pleasure-seeking by bored computer nerds. They represent a fundamental disagreement about the purposes of the Internet, and the increasing emphasis on the use of the 'Net as a vehicle for profitable trade rather than of knowledge and discussion.
On-site HTML file iconOccasional Paper 1a &150; Response from the Cult of the Dead Cow
Key concepts – Electrohippies, anticorporatism, packet orinists, Denial of Service (DoS), Freedom of Expression, hacktivism versus [h]activism; One Liner: The Electrohippies are trying to rationalize Denial of Service attacks and violate the First Amendment privileges of their opponents. oxblood ruffin, foreign minister, Cult of the Dead Cow
On-site HTML file iconI've seen the future and it has a penguin on it – how the 'open source' revolution will change IT, electrohippies collective Occasional Paper no.2, December 2000
Fundamentally, the IT revolution of the past 40 years happened because business wanted it to happen. They deemed it to be in our best interests. The 'open source' revolution will happen because people will demand it, and business will see the financial advantage of it, in order to have access to the new electronic society that is developing across the globe.
On-site HTML file iconWho does the Internet serve? ...he who pays the piper is only a participant in process; he who makes the pipes controls the tune', electrohippies Occasional Paper no.3, March 2001
There is an ancient proverb, "he who pays the piper calls the tune". In the world of traditional, real-world media this has been the case for centuries. But today the Internet, the new mass communications media, does not work according to this rule. The Internet is a technology-mediated form of communication. Whoever designs the technical standards, or sets the framework within which those standards are defined, is the person who controls the pipe the piper plays; those who pay the piper merely participate in the process, within the rules of those who control the pipes.
On-site HTML file iconOnline Civil Rights After September 11th – The threat to the right to protest online from the war against terrorism, electrohippies Occasional Paper No.4, November 2001
The online world represents a new 'space' in society where the public can work together on issues of common concern; to lobby, to protest, and to take action. But even before this potential has been broadly realised, the new 'war against terrorism', and the new legal sanctions against terrorism, threatens the rights of the public to use the Internet as a medium of public discourse and dissent.
On-site HTML file iconThe Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Bill – an analysis of the proposals in the Bill and their impact on the Internet and campaigning by grassroots groups, electrohippies Occasional Paper No.5, November 2001
In mid-November, the electrohippie collective began its 'anti-TWAT' campaign. Whilst beginning with a focus on the war in Afghanistan, the real issue at the heart of this campaign is to highlight the extreme measures now being promoted by many states, especially the UK and the USA, to counteract the 'terrorist threat'. The detailed perspective on why an 'anti-TWAT' action is required was outlined in our Occasional Paper No.4, and paper 4 should be read alongside this paper in order to fully comprehend the points being made here. This briefing goes further, to look at the implications of the new anti-terrorism powers proposed in the wake of September 11th in the UK.
On-site HTML file iconThe Computer Misuse (Amendment) Bill, electrohippies Occasional Paper No.6, May 2002
The Computer Misuse Act (CMA) 1990 created new offences in UK law relating to computer 'cracking' – the unauthorised access, breach of the security, and the damage to any type of computer system. Now the opposition Conservative Party in the UK's Upper House, the House of Lords, is promoting a new law – The Computer Misuse (Amendment) Bill – that seeks to extend the powers of the CMA to 'denial of service' actions. But in the process it potentially criminalises lobbying or protest via the Internet that causes 'degradation' or 'other impairment' of a computer system. In fact, such a broad definition that it could threaten any online lobbying or protest because it may have the potential to make life difficult for those who are the target of it.
On-site HTML file iconiDefense and the Internet 'thought police' – Misrepresenting the facts to create a media panic, electrohippie communiqué April 2000
As the electrohippies current action comes to a close, it is clear that the idea of translating public protest and lobbying to the Internet has support. But this action has also demonstrated the lengths to which the supporters of e-commerce will go to exert control over the publics' use of the Internet. Leading the way in the backlash against the use of the Internet by campaigners is the group that call themselves 'iDefense'. During our action last December iDefense branded us 'terrorists' without it would seem any evidence as to our group or our actions.
On-site HTML file iconCyberlaw UK – Civil rights and protest on the Internet, electrohippie communiqué, December 2000
Since early Summer 2000, the electrohippies have been rather 'quiet'. This is because the majority of the e'hippies are based in the UK, and during 2000 the British government has been developing new laws to 'police' British cyberspace. This potentially makes the actions of the electrohippies collective in the UK, whilst not illegal, potentially subject to a disruptive investigations by the state.
On-site HTML file iconelectrohippies 'disband to infiltrate' and grow the online activism network, electrohippie communiqué, 5th July 2002
the collective has always functioned on the basis that 'electrohippies' actions are mounted only with the full agreement of the active members. But away from the decision-making processes of the collective, collective members are active in other fields and with other groups, developing the ideas originated by discussion between the members. Today, the original aims of the collective to develop online activism in support of civil society are being more imaginatively achieved by co-operating with other groups. Abandoning the 'organisational overhead' will make this work easier.
On-site HTML file iconthe electrohippies end the 'un-collective' to unite around a different view of Vista, electrohippie Communiqué, 21st September 2006
In July 2002 the electrohippies disbanded "to infiltrate and grow the online activism network". That journey took members of the collective to work on interesting projects around Europe, in Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean. At the same time the agenda on the public's use of digital technology, as foreseen in our papers and communiqués between 2000 and 2002, has been affected by The War Against Terrorism (TWAT). However, it is our view that far worse than the security restrictions and increased state surveillance of TWAT has been the extension of digital rights management (or DRM) – which has been developed and enforced using a range of new intellectual property rights laws that were lobbied for by the computer software and media industries over recent years.
On-site HTML file iconLittle Town, Big Problem – Hacktivism comes to Llandeilo, electrohippies Hacktivism Case Study 1, February 2001
Dinefwr Green Group (DGG) has, for a number of months, campaigned against a number of superstore proposals in their part of Carmarthenshire, West Wales. Over the past year there has been a rush of applications for new superstores as the cut-price chains seek to compete with the larger supermarket chains. DGG have been campaigning on many of these applications with other groups in the area. It was at this point that a request was made to the electrohippie collective for help.
On-site HTML file iconThe Launch of the 'Anti-TWAT' action, electrohippies Hacktivism Case Study 2, December 2001
As part of the development of the "Anti-TWAT" action the electrohippies organised a 'launch day' at Pantglas in west Wales. The action was held in a tipi, 980ft up in the Welsh hills to the western end of the Black Mountains. The tipi had, for the day, been set up with computers and it had been networked by the electrohippies resident techie.

goto electrohippies archivemain index »»