We wondered, though, if it’s worth it. Is it worth doing something considered so dastardly to make that kind of money? We posed this question to our writers, many of whom have the technical knowledge to actually be a hacker, “Would you consider being a hacker if you could make a huge salary?”
Our Opinion
For the most part, ethics came into play. None of our writers reported that they would do hacking for illegal or nefarious purposes. But many suggested they would be open to ethical or white hacking, yet it still wouldn’t be for the money. Damien reports he does have the technical know-how, but he would only do ethical hacking rather than anything illegal. Additionally, it wouldn’t be the huge salary that drew him in; it would be more for personal satisfaction.
Mahesh agrees, saying he would definitely become a hacker for his own personal satisfaction but only if it’s ethical/white. He refuses to do anything illegal. Add Derrik into this mix. He’d be interested in doing white or ethical hacking “to find security vulnerabilities and help out.” But he’s not sure he’d be comfortable “ruining people’s lives even for the money.” Charnita reports that as it stands, ethical/white hacking is something she wants to get into anyway. However, they couldn’t pay her enough to do it for illegal purposes, as her upbringing and values and morals instilled in her wouldn’t allow it. Jeffry has no passion for hacking and wouldn’t do it for any reason. However, he knows a hacker who does it purely for his own personal satisfaction and who has turned down several job offers because he didn’t want to do it for someone else. I’m with Jeffry on this. I don’t have any interest in it so wouldn’t do it whether it was ethical or illegal and wouldn’t do it for money or personal satisfaction Phil actually had an interesting way of putting this whole discussion into perspective. Going back to his earliest computing experiences forty-some-odd years ago, it was always about the challenge rather than the ethics or the money. He believes it depends on “how deeply focused you are on the challenge or the consequences.”
Your Opinion
What about you, our faithful readers? What’s your opinion on this topic? Would you do illegal hacking or only ethical/white? Would it come down to personal satisfaction or a large payday? Would you consider being a hacker if you could make a huge salary? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
