Watch this video and consider how researchers might use the information shared by the former criminal to conduct cybersecurity studies.

Using criminals themselves to study their industry is something that has been happening for hundreds of years, after all who knows better than the people whose lives are based in that industry. By seeing where and how these criminals work through and around cybersecurity programs, researchers are able to see just what kind of crime, what kind of hack, and what kind of person is most often involved in cybercrime.

Is it ethical to study people in cyberspace when they don’t know they are being studied?

In terms of the ethicality of monitoring people without their knowledge I would have to say that as long as the anonymity of the person and any confidential information that was garnered through studying them was kept private, then it is ethically acceptable.