Abstract
This chapter looks at the rise of online vigilantism in the modern era. It seeks to define the actions of online vigilantes and explores the motivations and the actions undertaken by those who engage in these extra-legal activities. Throughout the chapter, these actions will be discussed within the parameters of crowdsourced vigilantism in the United States and the People’s Republic of China, cybersecurity counter hacking, hacktivism, online shaming, and scambaiting. This will be followed by the examination of the ethics and legality of the tasks undertaken by those engaged in online vigilantism as well as a theoretical lens through which to discuss the topic.
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Smallridge, J., Wagner, P. (2020). The Rise of Online Vigilantism. In: Holt, T., Bossler, A. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of International Cybercrime and Cyberdeviance. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-78440-3_68
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