Should former hackers be employed to enhance security?
According to (Baase, 2013), hackers were once viewed as creative programmers whose intentions were purely to seek knowledge and intellectual challenges, never to cause disruption or harm. However, sadly to say, that phase is long gone and today there are many different types of hackers with good and bad intentions. The 3 main types are “White Hat”, “Black Hat”, and “Grey Hat” hackers.
White Hat hackers refer to individuals who are considered “ethical hackers” and whose sole intention is to identify security vulnerabilities and to improve systems. While Black Hat hackers are those individuals who exploit weak and vulnerable systems for malicious reasons or personal gain and Grey Hat hackers is a combination of both White Hat and Black Hat hackers. They can either do good or bad.
I personally think it’s a bad idea to hire a Black Hat hacker for the purpose of improving security, due to the high level of risk involved. It is basically a paradox because while they are somewhat “experts” based on their experience in the world of hacking, they themselves pose a great risk if they decide to turn and go back to being malicious after gaining access to sensitive and valuable information. Given their history of continuous unethical behavior, it is hard to trust those individuals. As such, I would recommend sticking with White Hat hackers to combat security issues.
References
7 Types of Hackers You Should Know. (2015, September 9). Retrieved from Cybrary: https://www.cybrary.it/0p3n/types-of-hackers/
Baase, S. (2013). A Gift of Fire: Social, Legal, and Ethical Issues. San Diego: Pearson.
Reddy, C. (n.d.). Top 10 Pros and Cons of Hiring Hackers to Enhance Security. Retrieved from WiseStep: https://content.wisestep.com/top-pros-cons-hiring-hackers-enhance-security/
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