Recent press lauds Facebook as an effective media channel, with positive validation coming from large advertisers like Starbucks and Target who link paid social media presence to in-store purchase behavior.
Much of the campaign involved sending spear-phishing emails, where an unsuspecting target would click on a link, activating a program that would then runs quietly in the background of their computer network.
The European Commission's plans for an expanded fund to pay for infrastructure to link EU countries - roads, broadband and energy - was one easy target.
Members of the collective would often post a short Twitter message after a successful hack attack, providing a link to a Pastebin post which in turn contained details of the data they had copied from the target's computer servers.
Soon, the video was being used online as a new target for the bait-and-switch Rickroll meme in which a user posts a link to something supposedly relevant or interesting but turns out to be a ridiculous or annoying video or image instead.
They are a prime target for early take-up of telemedicine solutions, where specialists can consult with patients via video link-ups and monitor their vital signs remotely.