Cyber Security- The Reality/Basics

     Back before the age of internet and more so the age of modern technology, it wasn't too difficult to protect ones assets and privacy. Want to protect your money? Bury it in your back yard like a kooky old prospector, put it under your mattress, put it in a safe, carry a double barrel shotgun and let someone even think about jumping your wagon and seeing what happens. Want privacy? Build a giant fence around your house, get a guard dog, plant land mines in your yard. All jokes aside there are becoming increasingly more ways to have your privacy violated or your money stolen out from under you, this is due to our societies reliance to technology, especially the kind that requires internet connectivity. As a reluctant member of Gen Z I have a better idea of what "hacking" and "leaks" can mean than some of the older demographic. Granted, I do only have limited computer knowledge so let's just hit the basics you may not be aware of when it comes to hacking.

     I've grown up in an age where you can be exposed by anyone with a cellphone with two taps of a screen. You would think people would be a bit more careful with their private info or photos given how easy it seems to be for hackers to leak pictures of various celebrities. The list of people that have fallen victim to hackers is extremely long most of the time do to an illegally accessed Icloud or other cloud based photo/video storage services. These have become more secure over time but in all honesty it's probably best to keep the saucy photos saved on your devices memory under digital lock and key. I've seen countless celebrities fall victim to similar crimes we look at former Disney star Vanessa Hudgens and another Disney alum Bella Thorne. Both had explicit photos leaked that were never intended to be seen by the public. In Thorne's case as a show of confidence and strength she released the very photo's the hacker was trying to blackmail her with. While that may sound a bit odd many heralded her for her bravery showing that she is a proud and confident young woman who won't be pushed around or bullied by someone behind a keyboard. Another incident involving Radiohead occurred when they received a message from hackers who stole 18+ hours of unreleased footage of the band and asked for $150,000 dollars or they would release them. Radiohead of course chose to give the hooligans a digital middle finger and released all the footage for a modest price tag with the money going towards an environmentally friendly charity. And not that it's terribly important or relevant I will say that anyone can fall victim to a hacker, an example being that there are evidently explicit photos of Mick Jagger somewhere on the internet that were leaked from a personal device, yikes.  

    Many people aren't aware there are many sides to hacking. To break it up simply- the good and the bad. The light and the dark. In the words of Dana Carvey "Just like StarWars?". Yes and no. There is what's commonly referred to as Black Hat Hacking, much like the Sith this kind of hacker uses his prowess for gaining power and wealth. The hackers or leakers mentioned above fit into this category since they were making mischief and trying to hurt someone or turn a profit. This is the kind of hacker most people think of when they hear the word. And originally it was the most prevalent type in our digital society. With the advancement in technology and realization of it's importance White Hat Hacking was created. These are our Jedi in this metaphor, the ones who specialize in keeping the peace and protecting others. These are cybersecurity experts that help companies and businesses install anti-hacking countermeasures. Many times they do what is called a penetration test, a.k.a a pen test, which despite the odd name is a cyber security term. This is when the white hat tests the security of their employer by trying to break into their data or info. This gives ideas on improvements that need to be made to their cybersecurity. This is an example of ethical hacking which is essential just another common name for white hat hacking. Of course there are always grey areas, what if someone Watchdogs style modern day Robin Hood decided to erase a single mothers debt to a corrupt company? It's a nice thought and I'd be all for "sticking it to the man" so to speak, but It doesn't really work that way in the real world.