Prompt: Review the articles linked with each individual motive. Rank the motives from 1 to 7 as the motives that you think make the most sense (being 1) to the least sense (being 7). Explain why you rank each motive the way you rank it.
Disclaimer: This post is a response to the above journal prompt assigned in the CYSE 201S class. While I can relate to some motivations, I in no way endorse any of the cybercrimes mentioned in the following articles.
1. Political (Article):
The political motives of hacktivists make the most sense to me because they are pursuing tangible goals pertaining to current major societal issues. Many of the hacktivists mentioned in the article attempted to thwart extremism, the spread of misinformation, and greater authoritarian behavior by governments, which are all alarmingly on the rise and present many challenges in today’s society. Despite using illegal tactics, the world may be a better place if such hacktivists’ ideals come to fruition.
2. Multiple Reasons (Article):
In addition to the motivations already mentioned in the other articles, this article covers hopelessness in current society and hacking to gain and hone new technical skills as motives for cybercrime. I can understand how the feeling of difficulty in succeeding by navigating society using legal means may drive someone to cybercrime. If one feels they cannot legally achieve desirable amounts of comfort and status but believes they can reap substantial monetary rewards and social status through cybercrime, I can see how doing so may be tempting. Additionally, I understand that accomplishment and gratification often stem from problem-solving and completing a creation, such as a program or technique. One may find it easier to innovate and make successful tools when they do not need to conform to laws and regulations.
3. Money (Article):
Again, this motivation makes sense to me because it involves obtaining tangible outcomes. While it is illegal, it is understandable to some degree to engage in cybercrime when it is similar to running a business and provides for the physiological needs of those engaging in it. The data outlined in the article showed that most cybercriminals spend their money on basic needs, investments, and growing their cybercrime enterprise. Additionally, many spent their money on relationships and friendships. Despite being illegal, motivation stemming from money makes some sense because cybercrime fulfills the role that a legal, above-ground job would in many people’s lives.
4. Recognition (Article):
Committing cybercrime for recognition may make some sense in specific scenarios. For instance, one may gain a following and form a community to brainstorm ideas and provide technical assistance with future attacks. In other words, recognition may be used as a basis for more impactful attacks. However, I rank recognition lower because committing a cyberattack solely for recognition lacks actionable outcomes.
5. Entertainment (Article):
I rank entertainment and the following two motivations low because they do not have any apparent reasons that make them at all compelling. Considering the person mentioned in the article put the data of 700 million LinkedIn users up for sale, citing entertainment as motivation seems like a cop-out to avoid admitting to wanting monetary gain. I primarily rank entertainment higher than boredom and revenge because the perpetrator gets something out of an attack, even if it is only a bit of enjoyment.
6. Boredom (Article):
I rank boredom next to last because it does not seem to provide much benefit to the perpetrator that could not be achieved through other means. There are many ways to use technology to cure boredom without harming an innocent bystander.
7. Revenge (Article):
Causing significant emotional and psychological harm by creating or releasing revenge porn is not a justifiable motive because it does not have a payoff for the perpetrator other than basking in the misery of their victim. Revenge is entirely unproductive because it does nothing more than inflict pain on the victim and wastes the perpetrator’s time and energy, which they could use to solve the issues leading them to seek revenge.