Cybercrime: go how you f*cking clowns.

Online hacktivism can be considered positive in the way that white-hat hacktivists reveal hidden crimes that are harmful or put pressure on organizations to fight for people’s right. They are the digital Robin Hood, about which I have one blog post which you can check out here.

However, as cyberspace is a world, and just like other worlds, it has both sides. And the other, darker side I want to mention in this post is black-hat hackers. Due to the fact that the information system still contains many gaps that are too hard to be fulfilled as the system is too complicated, several people exploit it and make profit for themselves. Since not a huge proportion of population have understanding in this field, the ones who have gain so much power. And once they have such significant power, it is understandable that their purposes changed from raising people’s voice like Julian Assange or Edward Snowden, to stealing people’s credit card, like LulzSec.

This reminds me of a recent phenomena which is the Clown Prank. Clowns are supposed to bring joy to people, and now just because of some idiots pushing the game to far, they become people’s fear and anger. The purpose changes from right and pure, to wrong and dirt. White now turns into black.

rffligt

Nonetheless, I still believe that there is a need for the existence of such bad sides, as every society needs them to reflect the good sides, and be a motivation for the good to keep being good, and outplay the bad. Julian Assange or Edward Snowden have so much power, but they choose to be the white-hat, and they will still be.

The black-hat hackers will be hunted by the cyberspace community, just like how the creepy clowns have to defend themselves against Aussie’s anger.

21 thoughts on “Cybercrime: go how you f*cking clowns.”

  1. Using the recent clown phenomenon as a metaphor was a great way to explain how hacktivism can be turned into something far more malicious when that coding knowledge is in the wrong hands. You also showed useful examples for both white- and black-hat hackers that detailed the ways in which people can use the information on the internet for either public or personal gain. Small grammar correction; in your second paragraph it should write “have an understanding in this field” – you just forgot the “an”. For some continued reading, I found this article that lists large-scale political hacks in 2012: http://www.darkreading.com/attacks-and-breaches/9-ways-hacktivists-shocked-the-world-in-2012/d/d-id/1107923?

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  2. Having the link to your previous post was useful as it helps your readers see both sides of hacking. The way you explain black hat hackers, is effective to help readers understand what they actually do. Using the example of the clown pranks was interesting, because it is such a relevant example at the moment, as stories of these ‘pranks’ are popping up all over the world. You further this example with the whole good/bad sides because some people obviously support these ‘pranks’ even if most of the world believes this is wrong and needs to be stopped.

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  3. As someone who is terribly scared of clowns reading your post was a great challenge for me, especially as I had to strategically find a way to avoid your meme by covering it with my hand as I scrolled passed. But nonetheless, you have effectively highlighted both sides of the argument that are often associated with hacktivism and cybercrime. Using an example that is relevant to what is happening now is exactly what cybercrime is, it’s a something that happens instantly and can go out of control in a blink of an eye. I found this source that may be interesting to you but also adds to your comparison of black and white hat cybercrime, this sources looks at how cybercrime has evolved over the last 5 years, (https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2015/09/how-cybercrime-has-evolved-over-the-past-5-years/)

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    1. Hi there,

      Sorry for my using of the meme and the clowns example that freaks you out 😦
      Thanks for being brave and patient to read through and comment on my post. I also appreciate your suggested source.

      Cuong.

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  4. Every one’s comment so far on this post is so well put together and written so please don’t expect much from mine! How ridiculous is the clown phase. Cant wait for it to be over! The metaphor of clowns to black hackers was clever. The use of current examples made it easier to make your point, which I applaud you for, along with your ability to take constructive criticism noted in the comments.

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  5. Awesome job applying this week’s topic to today’s clown trend. I like your analysis of both white and black hat hackers, it highlights how the digital environment has been altered through actions of both sides. However, can ethical ‘white-hat’ hacking compete with cyber crime? This source might interest you, which delves into this insight [ http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2015/12/white-hat-ethical-hacking-cybersecurity/419355/ ]. Thanks for sharing!

    – Sonny

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    1. Hi Sonny,

      I personally think that white-hat hackers are ones that gave up their significant power to serve the right, therefore they will have the support of millions people who want to fight back cyber-criminals so they are totally be able to compete against them.

      Thanks for your comment and the source.
      Cuong.

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  6. The use of clowns to demonstrate the idea of turning black to white was a really effective way to approach this week’s topic. The part of your post which interested me the most was when you said ‘I still believe that there is a need for the existence of such bad sides, as every society needs them to reflect the good sides’. There is a common argument that good cannot be known to the world without evil, which you have touched upon. This source (https://www.orthocuban.com/2012/11/does-good-need-evil-to-exist/) argues both sides but concludes that good can exist by itself. In terms of the black hacker, I would argue that it is not a necessary part of the internet’s day to day operation. The internet could exist and be successful without it. Perhaps my view is simplistic, I wonder what you think? If black hackers were removed from the internet would it exist as we know it?

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  7. I really liked your meme this week. It hit the nail on the head in regards to Black-hat hacktivism with the great use of a popular internet phenomenon at the moment. I think it would be a really good idea to explore why black-hats tend to keep their personal identities hidden online as a way of screwing with the users of the internet. Does this add to the fear of users?
    Here is a good read to explore that!
    http://ianhsutherland.com/5-ways-computer-hackers-remain-anonymous/

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    1. Hi Jade

      I do think that hidden identities are among users’ fears because once you have no idea of who is attacking you, you will be afraid that it’s hard to fix the bad consequences.

      Thanks for the comment and the source.
      Cuong.

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  8. You state that “every society needs them (black hats) to reflect the good sides (white hats)”. This is similar to the Batman problem. The theory states that Batman’s villains only exist because Batman exists. Maybe, the only reason why black hats exist is because white hats exist. Hackers may operate on a ying-yang system where they both exist in harmony and balance each other out. Or, maybe white hats can exist with black hats. I believe that this is not solely a technological question, but one of morality.

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  9. Another reason why it’s so hard to use the system is because of how fast it updates itself. People always need to keep up with the ever changing flow of the internet. One day you are learning this computer language and then you have to learn another as it had been updated. I also agree on your point about how there must be a good and bad side of the topic. The bad side is there to remind us to not be so gullible. Coming to your point about the clown incident. It is just so crazy how something like this can create so much momentum. Here is an entertaining video on how beer can scare off a clown. http://metro.co.uk/2016/10/09/clown-filmed-chasing-man-with-a-hammer-on-night-of-six-attacks-6180844/

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  10. The idea of blackhat hackers, is for me, much more frightening than this fascinating clown epidemic. The idea that people would use their hacking ability to access someone’s personal information, from their address to their credit card details, just because they can, is legit terrifying. There’s a film called ‘Disconnected’ which delves into these ideas really well, and I recommend taking a look at it.

    Great post by the way!

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    1. Hi Max,

      Definitely the blackhat hackers raise more concern that the clowns, who are only idiots and losers wanting to show up their ‘nothing’. I will take a look at the film.

      Thanks for the comment.
      Cuong.

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