Someone took control of the Linux.org website and replaced its content with a picture of a person stretching their anus—a re-enactment of an obscene historic meme known as “Goatse”—and a tirade against the open source project’s new code of conduct.
Linux.org is not the official website of the Linux Foundation. It described itself as “a friendly community” where people “learn and help solve Linux issues.” The site does not appear to store any code or any sensitive data. This appears to be an act of protest against the recently introduced new code of conduct rules for the Linux community, which include rules against sexual harassment and advocates for more diversity. These rules have sparked some controversy within the community in the last few months.
“G3T 0WNED L1NUX N3RDZ,” read the message posted on the site on Thursday night, according to screenshots shared on Twitter and archived versions of the site.
The message also made a shout out to late developer Terry Davis, whom Motherboard profiled a few years ago, and included a link to a news story on the Linux code of conduct. Finally, the message also linked to the Twitter profile of kitlol5. As of Friday morning, Linux.org redirected to kitlol5’s Twitter profile.
Got a tip? You can contact this reporter securely on Signal at +1 917 257 1382, OTR chat at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
On Thursday night kitlol5 wrote on Twitter that they had registered the expired Linux.org domain, a message that seemed to imply that they were behind the defacement, and that’s how they may have gotten control of it.
“I hacked it,“ kitlol5 told Motherboard in an online chat. “We didn't register the domain. I posted that tweet to prove it was hijacked and not reregistered.“
Another version of the site included a more explicit anti-diversity message: “FUCK THE [CODE OF CONDUCT] FUCK [SOCIAL JUSTICE WARRIORS].” The message also included the personal information, including alleged home address and social security number, of a transgender Linux developer.
A screenshot of the defaced Linux.org website.
“Looks like someone is playing a joke on us and our DNS,” the official Linux.org Twitter account wrote after the defacement. “I'm currently at my daughter's christmas concert, but I'll look into it soon. I've shut down our [production environment] to ensure data is safe.”
In September, Linus Torvalds and six other developers published a new code of conduct in an attempt to foster more diversity and more civil discourse. Some Linux developers protested the change, claiming it defied the core values of the popular open source project. For many, however, these complaints were just thinly veiled misogyny and discrimination.
UPDATE: This story has been updated to include kitlol5 comments.
Listen to CYBER, Motherboard’s new weekly podcast about hacking and cybersecurity.