At what point do white hat hackers cross the ethical line?

In internet slang, the term "white hat" stands for an ethical hacking or computer security expert who specializes in testing methodologies to keep the organization's information systems secure. White hat hackers are generally regarded as hackers who use their skills to benefit the society. While some believe it all depends on the intentions of a hacker. The hacker is considered to be ethical only when he penetrates a system with no malicious agenda and discloses the identified vulnerabilities.

But at what point the line of ethics should be drawn? The term white hat turns out differently to different people. Apparently, there are professionals in the cyber security profession who learn hacking and dedicate their entire career on being strictly white hat. These security professionals must have strong morals and should never penetrate any system without prior approval. They must follow stringent rules to guard both their reputation and prospect earnings.  

However, the definition drifts in case of unprofessional practitioners who attain hacking training from various sources. For example, many hackers who consider themselves to be white hats would find it easy to check if their bank has an open IPMI port, as long as their intention was to inform the bank. For them it’s ethically no different from monitoring if the door is locked at night at their local bank. In spite of everything, their motives are pure.

This is where the main concern crops up. Pure motives do not mean the actions are ethical. No matter how righteous their intentions are, white hat hackers can still, quite simply, cause unplanned harm. According to the U.S. Code, Title 18, §1030, it is a crime to penetrate any security system with prior approval from the authorities.

Related : Career Scope in ethical hacking

Career Scope In Ethical Hacking

Security has emerged as a big concern these days, not only in objective space but also in the cyber space. Formerly, breaking into computer frameworks was a best pursuit for geeks, but now it has turned into a full-grown career option. Recently, there has been a disturbing augment in the figures of cyber crime cases on web such as hacking email accounts, thieving and interrupting crucial data, password attacks, obnoxious emails etc. This has significantly amplified the demand for ethical hackers who indeed are the saviors.

Even though hacking is considered as an offense, however it is regarded ethical only when it is carried out under a contract amid the hacker and the company. When we come across the word 'hackers' a fear arises in our minds. But 'ethical hackers' also known as a 'white hat' are our friends. An ethical hacker is somebody who hacks with lawful authorization to reinforce systems and makes them penetration-free. Ethical hacker is a network specialist who helps in identifying loopholes in an IT framework to hunt for vulnerabilities if any, so that the system stays protected from any spiteful hacker.

Eligibility For Ethical Hacker

Aspirants having an educational background in IT or computer science or computer engineering can cross the threshold of ethical hacking field. They are required to know programming languages like C, C++, Python, Ruby etc. They must be acquainted with extensively used operating systems like the different versions of Windows, Linux and Firefox etc. which is an important aspect of their knowledge base.

Listed below are some of the certifications in Ethical Hacking:

• CEH (Certified Ethical Hacker)
• CHFI (Computer Hacking Forensic Investigator)
• CCNA Security (Cisco Certified Network Associate Security)
• SCP's SCNS (Security Certified Network Specialist)
• SCNP (Security Certified Network Professional)
• CISSP (Certified Information Systems Security Professional)

Job Prospects

Owing to the growing use of internet worldwide, the cyber crimes are thriving at an alarming rate. This has increased the demand for ethical hackers. Apparently, ethical hackers constitute an integral workforce of any IT security industry nowadays. On the other hand, presently there is a massive gap between the demand and supply where ethical hackers are concerned. That’s why scope for a fresher is productive not only in India but internationally.

Internet security and Networking are the two rapidly-growing industries where ethical hackers can hit upon jobs in ethical hacking and information security. The key responsibility of an ethical hacker is to get hold of vulnerabilities in network and ways to fix them. They can also join the government organizations as cyber security experts. Majorly, IT firms are the key recruiters of ethical hackers.