According to a weekend report by Panda Security, users of the 4chan website – a discussion forum used by manga and anime enthusiasts – have orchestrated a campaign to launch similar DDoS attacks against the MPAA.
Reporting on the attacks, Panda's lead security researcher Sean-Paul Correll (aka Lithium on Twitter) said that the MPAA portal was down over the weekend for more than 21 hours, and a similar attack against the RIAA's website was imminent.
In his security blog, which has a number of screen images – apparently from the organisers of the DDoS attacks on the MPAA and RIAA sites – Correll says that, not only do the retaliators have the collective manpower, but they will also be using botnets to assist in the attacks.
"How do you stop the collective man power of an entire internet community", he asks in a rhetorical question.
The answer, it seems, is that whilst the authorities can seize equipment, hunt down the originators of the attack, "this is a group who has prided themselves in remaining anonymous, and have done so very well through the power of the internet."
"This is the future of cyber protests", he said.