DESCRIPTION: This a post talking about the differences and similarities between ethical and non-ethical hacking in the world. This is meant to be an insight into the world of hacking and cybersecurity, and they shape our digital landscape (aka our internet).
Technological Warfare
Humankind tends to repeat a cycle when it comes to technology. We create new exciting technological advances that help the human race reach new heights, and then we instantly try to figure out how to hurt or kill each other with the technology previously mentioned. It has been like this for several centuries now, and the internet is no different. The internet itself is just a new type of battlefield where instead of soldiers and resources being lost, it’s our private information on the line. According to my sources “Combined, over 100,000 identity theft and personal data breaches occur every year.” But how on earth are people losing all their information? The short answer is hacking. Hacks are a form of coding that is built to essentially worm its way into a website, account, or even your device. Once planted there the hacker can do whatever they want, or learn whatever they want. It depends on the type of hack they use. However, there is an ethical way to use hacking for good instead of the obvious implications of all the illegal things you can do with hacking.
Ethical Hacking
Ethical hacking is the art of hacking to benefit others and point out cybersecurity flaws. The people who practice this form of hacking are called white hat hackers, and they are called in to check security or help someone who cannot log in to an account or website. They use their knowledge of code and hacking to help others essentially. There has been some controversy over the years about what separates a white hat hacker from a regular hacker (which has its own hat term), but most agree that it has to do with intent. Some companies bring on white hats to check their websites for bugs and glitches. They call these jobs “Bug bounties” and they are contract jobs that white hat hackers can take. However, there’s also another type of hacker…
Non-Ethical Hacking
Non-ethical hacking is a form of hacking that only benefits the hacker and hurts the person getting hacked. What that means is the hacker essentially steals information or breaks something on the device that got hacked with bugs, glitches, or viruses. The people who practice this type of hacking are called black hat hackers. These people hack mainly for their own benefit and rarely care about the consequences. Speaking of which, you can gain from 5 to 10 years in federal prison for hacking, with a $10,000 fine. This may differ depending on what the hacker did, how long they did it for, and why (which is its own can of worms). Types of unethical hacking might involve false add pop-ups, Scam calls or text messages, Email spamming, or fake email messages.
What do I do?
Many have already come up with solutions to these hacker attacks. Whether they’re firewalls, anti-virus software, or basic checkups. But one thing that not a lot of people talk about that can help is white hat hackers. White hat hackers are sometimes hired by companies to hack their websites to search for openings that a black hat hacker might try to use to get in. That way the people who make the websites can patch up these flaws and vulnerabilities. Another more common way of protecting you’re stuff on the internet is firewalls (which I briefly mentioned before). Firewalls act as filters for the system, making sure whatever goes into the thing that their guardian doesn’t cause harm. Think of a firewall like a bouncer trying to make sure no one who wasn’t invited can’t get in. Lastly, Anti-virus systems also exist to clean out computers (not physically though). They check for viruses and eradicate them so that way they don’t do any more damage to the system.
Conclusion
Wow, I thought I would never stop talking. Anyway, there’s a lot more I could talk about in this blog post. Like all the other different types of hackers, what hacking has changed about politics, or how hacking is sometimes used in the military. But I think I’ve talked long enough. And besides, it’ll allow you to look up this information and do your research on the topic. So let me close with this. If you know how to hack, use your power responsibly, and make sure to help others as much as you can. And if you are someone who wants to protect themselves or others from cyber attacks, always make sure you check every part of what you’re protecting.
