Autistici/Inventati is an institution in the Italian hacking scene. This collective has been a pillar of the Italian hacking scene for 25 years, providing free services for activists, such as mailing lists, VPNs, email servers, as well as education and solidarity.
Since yesterday it has been a " Specially Designated Global Terrorist" by the United States of America:
Autistici/Inventati (A/I Collective) is an Italy-based extremist group that builds and operates the digital infrastructure for violent Antifa cells and other far-left militants across the world. A/I’s cadre of radical hackers and tech developers provide a full spectrum of services – including encrypted chats and email, web hosting, secure video conferencing and streaming, anonymity shields, and a suite of other technological tools – to Marxist, anarchist, and other left-wing extremist groups in the United States, Europe, and elsewhere. These tools are specifically designed to support the operations of far-left terrorist networks, built to enable them to organize, recruit, communicate, disseminate propaganda, share target information and tactics, and carry out violent attacks – all while remaining anonymous, untraceable, and beyond the reach of the law.
At a personal level, I have been very skeptical about the use of sanctions against individuals and organizations that are established by the executive branch without judicial oversee, and this is exactly the case that proves my worries.
Regarding this case, is there anything that we can do at the institutional level?
I was reading the same things as well, end of last week, and had the same feeling.
Though I do share a sentiment of not wanting to be involved with common Terrorists. I don’t want to let myself be swayed by the first bully calling someone a name and then act as if that were the truth. (Schoolyard metaphor)
The reason I have gathered is because of the shared technology and instructions on how to use it, regardless of background of the requestor. Which is very much like the Pirate ideology: that information should be able to be shared.
So if this drags on, it will probably revolve around some export restriction and some example (to be made?).
I do not want to be the one, deciding at the gate, who would be taught which math. (which is technically what this is about). Because the ‘threat’ is the technology provided would allow for hidden communication: Exactly what you would need in a proper functioning democracy, a way to communicate without the state knowing, since the state is to arise from the democracy, not the other way around.
I’m not sure what can be done except helping to build the case through communication on it. The strongest institutional actions we could take would be through the pirate MEPs and MPs.
A/I have provided technology (hosting and comms) to Antifa and other groups opposing the actions of the Trump administration (particularly ICE). Hacktivism and using technology for social disobedience was the core of the Pirate movement, and it has historically been the US, big tech, and US payment providers that have tried to suppress this. These actions are just more of the same.
Mis-use of anti-terrorism legislation to label groups holding a government to account is bad enough, but this is a direct attack against a European group who merely provide technical assistance.
This is particularly worrying in the context of the EU wanting to build sovereign tech companies. Protest groups are naturally going to be using more and more European solutions to oppose the actions of an increasingly unhinged US adminstration. How long before Proton or Tuta are similarly judged?
I would think that a public statement condemning the US for their actions, and supporting Autistici/Inventati, should be a start.
Unfortunately, the latest news is a press release from A/I: they are closing down to avoid too much pressure on their volunteers. Also, their bank, which is ironically called “Banca Etica”, decided to close their account and keep the money sent by donors on that account.
That’s an understandable development, albeit an unfortunate one. It doesn’t prevent us from expressing out support and dissatisfaction with weaponizing terrorism and sanctions regimes like this.