--- # 2600 Facebook Group: The User Handbook v0.91 Welcome to the 2600 Facebook Group. This space serves as the front door to the broader 2600 ecosystem and is managed by active professionals in the cybersecurity industry. Our goal is to foster intelligent, high-signal discussions about hacking, cybersecurity, technology policy, privacy, and the hacker ethos. To keep the signal-to-noise ratio high, we expect members to elevate the conversation. This handbook outlines how to get the most out of this group, what we expect from your posts, and how to protect yourself while participating. ## 1. The Standard of Discourse We value intelligent, technical, "high-brow" discussions. This is a community for hackers, makers, researchers, and learners who want to dig deep into how systems work (and how they break). * **The Topic List:** The 2600 umbrella is massive. Check the **Featured** posts for our comprehensive (though not entirely exhaustive) list of acceptable topics. If your post touches on hacking, phreaking, cybersecurity, privacy, telecom, or tech policy, it likely belongs here. * **No "Tourist" Posts or Comments:** This is not a tech-support forum, nor is it a place for personal vendettas. Posts asking "How do I hack my ex's Facebook?" or "Is this spam text a virus?" will be removed. This applies equally to the **comments section**—if a thread is discussing a complex vulnerability, do not derail it with pseudo-technical nonsense or irrelevant jokes. If you have nothing technical or insightful to add, read and learn rather than cluttering the thread with noise. * **Expose & Dissect Scams:** We strongly encourage raising awareness about new scams, phishing campaigns, and malware. If you have the technical capability, don't just post a screenshot—break down the mechanism, the payload, or the social engineering tactics being utilized so the community can learn from it. If you don't have the technical background to dissect it, you can still post to raise awareness, but provide as much context as you can. * **Post Original Content & Quote Sources:** We want to see what you are building, researching, or breaking. If you are sharing news, an article, or a vulnerability write-up, don't just drop a naked link. Provide your own commentary, summarize the core issue, and quote the primary source directly. * **Zero Self-Promotion:** This group is not a billboard for your startup, your YouTube channel, your crypto project, or your personal brand. If your primary goal is to drive traffic to your own monetized content, your post will be deleted. ## 2. Personal OPSEC on a Public Platform You are communicating on Facebook—a platform inherently designed to mine and broadcast data. Act accordingly and take responsibility for your own operational security. * **Lock Down Your Profile:** Review your Facebook privacy settings. Limit what non-friends can see about your employment, location, family, and connections. * **Beware of DMs:** Do not engage with unsolicited Direct Messages from other group members. Trolls, scammers, and social engineers frequently target large cybersecurity groups to find marks. If someone attempts to move a public group discussion into your private inbox, treat it as highly suspicious. * **Sanitize Your Data:** Be mindful of the screenshots you post, the command-line outputs you paste, and the metadata you share. Redact IPs, usernames, and tokens before broadcasting them to a massive audience of strangers. ## 3. Rules of Engagement & Moderation Behavior in this group is governed by the **[2600 Code of Conduct](https://codeofconduct.2600.chat)** and standard Facebook Community Guidelines. * **Don't Feed the Trolls:** With a group this size, edge-lords and trolls are inevitable. Engaging with them in the comments only derails the thread and creates a mess for the moderators. If you see someone baiting the community, ignore them. * **Use "Report to Admin":** If you see a post or comment that violates our Code of Conduct, use Facebook's **Report to Group Admins** feature. Do *not* engage the user. Let our internal moderation team handle the issue quietly and efficiently rather than relying on Facebook's general reporting systems. ## 4. Navigating the Group Before you ask a question or start a new thread, "Read The F***ing Manual" (RTFM). * **Check the Featured Posts:** The administrative team pins crucial updates, the acceptable topic list, event announcements, and group resources at the top of the group in the "Featured" tab. * **Read the Group Description:** The sidebar/description contains vital links and the basic rules of the road. * **Use the Search Bar:** Chances are, your question has been discussed before. Search the group history before posting. ## 5. Beyond Facebook: Supporting the 2600 Ecosystem This Facebook group is just a digital outpost. The real heart of the 2600 community exists offline, in print, and on decentralized platforms. If you want to truly engage with hacker culture, step outside the walled garden: * **Write for the Magazine:** *2600: The Hacker Quarterly* has been in print since 1984, and it is written entirely by its readers. If you've researched a vulnerability, built something unique, or have a deep dive into tech policy, write an article and submit it to **[2600.com](https://www.2600.com)**. You don't need to be a professional writer, just a hacker with something to share. * **Support the Print Edition:** Subscribe to the magazine or buy back issues to keep independent hacker media alive. * **Go to Local Meetings:** 2600 meetings happen on the first Friday of every month in cities all over the world. They are open to anyone. Find your local meeting and show up. * **Attend HOPE:** Hackers On Planet Earth (HOPE) is our flagship conference in New York. Come for the talks, stay for the community. * **Join the IRC Network:** The real, unfiltered, day-to-day conversation happens on our IRC network. Get an IRC client, connect to **irc.2600.net**, and join the conversation. *(Note: If you ever need to appeal a Facebook group ban, it must be done in the `#fb2600` channel on this network).*