According to the Vice report, the infamous hacker Phineas Fisher published a new manifesto last week offering to pay hackers up to $100,000 in bitcoins for hacking banks and oil companies. Fisher called this a “Hacktivist Bug Hunting Program.” The hacks carried out by this group are politically motivated to reveal information that is in public interest.
“Fight against inequality and capitalism.”
In its manifesto, Phineas Fisher called on other hackers to join in the fight against inequality and capitalism. According to Fisher, hacking to obtain and leak documents with public interest is one of the best ways for hackers to use their abilities to benefit society. The anonymous hacker said that his aim with $100,000 in bounty is not to make someone rich, he added that he is trying to provide enough funds so that hackers can make a decent living doing a good job.
Phineas Fisher is the face of hacktivism.
Fisher is a well-known hacktivist with a proven track record. This group or a single person has hacked and revealed documents from several government agencies that were in public interest. In 2014, the hacker stole data from the British-German surveillance vendor Gamma Group, which makes the controversial spyware FinFisher.
Phineas Fisher also broke into the servers of the Hacking Team, an Italian company that made hacking and surveillance software for police and intelligence agencies for different countries. So far, Fisher has publicly claimed five major hacks that they executed.