The internet as we know it could soon be a thing of the past – especially if it goes out of this world. Metro meets the team of computer hackers who have plans to put the web into space....
The Hackerspace Global Grid (HGG) is a proposed network of stations on Earth to ensure communication with satellites in orbit. It is part of an ambitious attempt to not only establish the internet in space but also to put a hacker on the Moon by 2034.
The resulting web connection would be used by hundreds of hackerspaces – labs made up of technology and computer devotees – around the world.
US hacker Nick Farr originally issued the challenge. If it works, he believes the project could lead to ‘an internet free from censorship’.
Many hackers, as well as technology giants such as Google and Twitter, are opposed to the Stop Online Piracy Act (Sopa) currently going through US Congress.
And just last week, the Spanish government approved its own anti-piracy law that could see internet service providers blocking certain websites.
‘Our idea was to just say: it’s absolutely possible to defeat internet censorship, defeat a militaristic approach to space and get on the Moon,’ said Mr Farr.
‘HGG is an important first step towards putting the internet in space. To do that, we need to track what’s up there and learn how to communicate with it all.’
Mr Farr, who estimates HGG could cost about £20,000, said: ‘We have the resources to put a free, uncensorable internet in space for everyone around the world to use with low-cost hardware.
‘It’s just a matter of figuring out how to do it, and we’re working on that. ‘Once that’s done, we’ll put a hacker in orbit. And once that’s done, we’ll put a hacker on the Moon.’
The team behind HGG is from the shackspace hackerspace in Stuttgart. One of their members, known only as ‘hadez’, told Metro that their plan was to make satellite-based communication available ‘for all of mankind’.
The first step to achieving this will be to set up about 1,000 ‘ground stations’ all over the world in hackers’ gardens or balconies.
They would use existing equipment such as HAM (amateur) radio satellites that work with a worldwide ‘supercomputer’, known as Constellation.
So far, 200 volunteers have signed up to help the project by either building their own ground station or purchasing one – complete with antenna – for about €100 (£82).
Before that stage, four prototype ground stations will be ready for testing by the summer.
Those behind HGG stress the project is not political.
‘HGG’s aim is to provide the core infrastructure,’ said hadez. ‘Fighting censorship and Sopa-related issues is on the horizon but will most likely be handled by other teams inside the hacker community.’
Graeme Batsman, director of British IT security company Data Defender, said the space project was ‘taking privacy activism to the extreme’. He added: ‘To call them hackers is a little harsh – they are more like a group of scientists.
‘The US will not like this. They love to be able to monitor their citizens and companies so I bet there will be some bill against this or an undercover mission to stop it.’
However, Andreas Hornig, head of Constellation, is not concerned about potentially being shut down by a government, saying there would be ‘no need’.
Instead, he insisted the project would simply give everyone the chance to ‘get involved with a grassroots space programme’.
Mr Hornig added: ‘I want to sleep well at night and my intention is to conform with all the current laws.’
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