Are All Hackers Bad?

Getting down to business in our Hacking vs. Spamming blog series, I pose the question: Are all hackers bad? We are all quite aware of the damage that hackers can cause, from identity theft to security threats…but are there possibly any good hackers out there? Are there hackers that are using their skills for good? Of course there are.

The most well known example of good hackers is demonstrated by those hired by companies, agencies and governments to intentionally hack systems and determine their vulnerability. These experts, in turn, advise how to make the systems stronger and more secure. This widespread practice is nothing new.

What is fairly new is the concept of hackers emerging as watchdogs to bring light to injustices that are intentionally hidden from the public. What may seem an unlikely practice for a population known for keeping to themselves, a growing number seem to be emerging from their comfort zone to expose information that they were possibly even hired to hide. An example of this was recently written about in a New York Times article:

“A hacker organization known as Anonymous released a series of e-mails on Monday provided by a former Bank of America employee who claims they show how a division of the bank sought to hide information on foreclosures.”

But why would hackers do this, and why now? It could be to present a new positive image of the hacker community. It could be the thrill of divulging information that effort was exuded to hide. The only way to know is to get answers straight from the source.

Today, it is commonly accepted that hackers can either fall into the bad camp or the good camp. Hacking is a complex issue that often suffers misconceptions and a lack of complete understanding. Many would argue that the term itself has unjustly received bad reputation. However, the stigma associated with hacking seems to be easing up as more people come to understand what it means to be a hacker. New terms like “Hacking RSS” (which is the practice of making adjustments to reduce unnecessary traffic to your RSS stream) are giving a positive association to the technical meaning of “hacking.”

Each of these developments just scratches the surface of the hacker community as a whole. This doesn’t mean that new threats aren’t still being developed every day. For all the hackers that are using their skills positively, just as many are coming up with new ways to break into our networks, phones and even our cars. In our next post, I’ll explain some of the new ways hackers are posing threats, how they are getting smarter, and how to be one step ahead.


Let us know if you've had an experience with a hacker (good or bad) and come connect to us on Twitter and Facebook.

About the Author: Jandee Ferland is the Social Network Engineer at IC. She is an avid fan of any technology that makes life a little easier and can often be found checking out new apps, posting on Twitter (@ICtweet), or learning how to podcast.