Who Even Is a Criminal Now?

At WIRED, we’ve had a long-running obsession pinch rogues. This is, aft all, a publication that was founded successful nan early ’90s, calved of a desire to champion nan subversive, disruptive advent of nan internet—and nan hackers, hustlers, and blue-sky lunatics consumed by nan possibilities of a digitized and interconnected planet.

Of course, WIRED had nary idea, then, conscionable what those rogues would yet unleash: a proliferation of bad actors wreaking havoc crossed nan web; a booming manufacture of online conspiracy theorists whose vulnerable convictions frighten everything from nan wellness of our children to nan spot of our democracies; and a coterie of tech billionaires pinch checkbooks and megaphones that scope from Silicon Valley each nan measurement to nan White House. Yes, rogues built nan net and inspired a technological revolution. Now, a mutated and overmuch much powerful type of that aforesaid lawless tone threatens to undo overmuch of nan unthinkable advancement that exertion and technological enquiry person unlocked. DOGE Boys: I’m looking astatine you.

In this version of WIRED, we’re uncovering plentifulness of ways to show you conscionable really roguish, really crooked, and really precarious our world has become. Matt Burgess brings you nan wrong communicative of Nigeria’s Yahoo Boys and nan “scam influencer” school them really to propulsion blase integer cons connected American victims. From Andy Greenberg, a timeline of ghost guns culminating successful nan 1 that Luigi Mangione allegedly utilized to execution a wellness attraction CEO successful wide daylight—an enactment that’s turned Mangione into nan internet’s astir beloved rogue successful caller memory. (Scroll down to watch what happened erstwhile Andy tried to re-create that limb himself.) And from Evan Ratliff, nan sweeping, bone-chilling saga of nan Zizians, a group of talented young technologists who became nan world’s first AI-inflected decease cult and allegedly killed six group complete respective violent, chaotic years.

Scam influencers? DIY guns? AI decease cults? Yes, things are unsmooth retired there. But we wouldn’t beryllium WIRED without finding—and moreover creating—a small spot of roguish nosy amid nan gloom. Elsewhere successful this issue, we’ll present you to a caller and inspiring era of anti-establishment rebellion that’s taking root: Amber Scorah, nan cofounder of a nonprofit that helps whistleblowers safely stock accusation pinch nan masses, is 1 specified example. Another is Bluesky CEO Jay Graber, who sat down pinch Kate Knibbs to elaborate connected her imagination for a democratized societal internet. Plus, our Gear experts will show you nan slickest, astir villainous products to outfit your supervillain lair.

If you return 1 point from our Rogues Issue, I dream it’s this: “Rogue” is by nary intends a pejorative—even if it feels for illustration much nasty bad actors than ever, perched successful nan highest seats of power, are moving roughshod complete beautiful overmuch everything. In fact, I’d reason that this infinitesimal calls for much rogues alternatively than fewer. The idealistic rogues. The indefatigable rogues. The caller loop of blue-sky lunatics who tin ideate what a amended world should look like—and are consenting to conflict nan position quo to get america there. So beryllium nan rogue you want to spot successful nan world, and cognize that WIRED, pinch each ounce of rebel tone successful our DNA, will beryllium correct location pinch you.