Consequences Of Politically Motivated Hacking

Effects and impacts of political hacking

Discuss about the Consequences of Politically Motivated Hacking.

In the current scenario, many of the people have started using technology with the intention to harm others. Political motivated hacking is a kind of a dangerous online threat to politicians these days (Infosec Institute, 2018). Although there are some techniques to stop this hacking but those are not enough as this hacking is more powerful than the said techniques. The persons who are used to do such hacks are known as hackers. Hacking is a crime and there is always a malafide intention behind doing so (Australian Federal Police, 2018). In the recent years so many cases has recorded in Australia, where hackers has stolen personal data of politicians and defamed them. Political hacking needs not be related to personal data hacking; it can be of other types too. Sometimes, hackers post false information by the name of politicians which make confusion among general public. In conjunction to this, sometimes they also destroy data from government sites and make politicians responsible for this. Effect of political motivated hacking is far dangerous which can even be related to serious issues such as nuclear disasters and uproarious attacks against society and government (Vamosi, 2011). In order to decrease the ratio of political hacking, there is a requirement to improve to level of security level and defenses.

Effects and impacts of political hacking are too threatening. Hacking is counted as cyber-crime. Cyber-crime is a kind of misconduct which people do with the help of internet. When internet has become developed globally, at the starting phase people were used to operate the same for their betterment. But now with passage of time some people are start using the same for others, to defame the other and to harm the others (Acorn, 2018). There are countless adverse consequences of politically motivated hacking. As the name implies itself, this kind of hacking is related to politicians rather than the general public. Whenever a terrorist attack happens to any of the nation, there is always a flow of information to wrong people. These people use the crucial data of a nation for a deceptive purpose and do the acts like attacks and riot (Kornwitz, 2017).

Politicians are the important person to a nation. A nation works by the mind of politicians. But when an activity such as political hacking comes into light, it defame to the said important person. By stealing politician’s personal data, such hackers plan activities which have their adverse impact on nation as well as on politician. Politically motivated hacking has economic and social losses (Rouse, 2018). This is to mention that politicians have very crucial data with them related to their nation and also has their personal plans and policies. Due to such hacking these policies goes out and become useless. Data available with government departments is expected to be secure. A nation has the most crucial data with their government servers. But in case of such planned political hacking, this data no longer remain of use (Lohrmann, 2016). Here, this is also important to know that there is always a purpose behind politically motivate hacking. Sometimes such kind of hacking is intra nation. Which mean one political party can use the hacking techniques in against to other party. Whether, these hacking techniques are uses against one party or to one nation, this always brings injurious results.

Potential consequences of political motivated hacking

Potential consequences of political motivated hacking can be disturbance among public, economic loss and defamation of politicians. In addition to this, such hacking also put massive disruption on mind of politicians. Nothing can be more dangerous for a nation if it is basic data is not secured from hackers (RNZ, 2017). Behind every political motivated hacking, there is always a criminal mind.

One thing is very clear that the presented techniques are not secured enough to protect the relevant data. To Secure a Nation’s crucial data, there must be some better techniques. Although such data is not available on any local network, yet the same need to be secure more carefully. Even being on servers and clouds, these data re not secured, the main reason of this is that the security gateways are not so strong (Greene, 2018). When a data path has very common location or easily traceable then such data remains not at all secure. For protecting a data from computer viruses, there so many good anti viruses are available but the main issue is with hacking, and it becomes more crucial when it comes to politically motivated hacking. Here requirement of a Content Management Systems are need to know. What level of security, a person wants in order to secure his/her data is very important aspects. Political data has huge significance and need to be secure very carefully. If the secure system and separate server would not be create for such kind of data then this data cannot be remain secure (Latimer, 2017).

In the present era it has come into knowledge that many of the times political parties retain their data on a different server but such server does not have limited access or it may state that the same is share with many of the people in a department. One needs to sure that crucial data like political one must have limited allowed access (IKARUS, 2018). In addition to server security, data base security also plays significant role in security of a data. At current scenario, most of the times data which have their political value are remain available on a week database. These databases are not restrictive in nature. Further, at present it is a general practice follow by government to outsource their IT services to any of the private players. No doubt such players do well in market, but they do not provide the guarantee of data security. In order to secure the data from politically motivated hacking, governments and politicians are needed to be more aware. With the current approach, data cannot be treated as secured from such hacking and present system and defenses against politically motivated hacking needs more updation or it may state that security techniques of data hacking prevention need to be more effective (Brujin and Janseen, 2017) .

Effectiveness of current Security techniques

Criminological theories are the reason which motivates people for doing crime. These terms defines that why people actually commit crime (Criminal Justice, 2017). There are numbers of theories which have been identified by law over the years. As earlier discussed that hacking is a kind of cyber-crime, there can be many reasons to commit the same. Generally, behind a criminal mind there is more than one reason. It is important to know that why few of the people are engaged in crime, whereas other are not. What is the reason of such difference? Why some of the people work only to hurt others? Criminological theories answer all these questions. These theories basically are the motivation for criminals (Tania, 2014). These theories have many kinds, out of which some important ones are discussed in this essay hereafter. Criminological theories include Rational Choice Theory, Social Learning Theory, Labeling Theory, Frustration Strain Theory and further more (Briggs, 2018).

Rational Choice Theory is a situation where a person works for self-interest or for the benefit of some reward in exchange of commitment of a crime. This is a situation where criminal knows the potential result of a crime conduct and he/she compares the same with the benefit he/she is going to get by doing so. When such criminal turns to be sure that they are adhere to get more in return, they precede the crime they have asked for. Whereas in Social learning theory, people get motivate to commit crime and they get the required skills to do so from the people they are in association with. Here it means people observes their surroundings and people in their neighborhood and get motivate to do crime while watching them doing so (Ogilvie and Stewart, 2010).

Further, Labeling Theory is the one where a person makes declare another one as criminal and other people starts using that criminal mind for their purpose and such people starts to approach them to commit more crime (ReviseSociology, 2016). Frustration and strain theory is one of the most important one in criminological theories. This theory is one the great motivation behind criminal mind (Griffith University, 2018).

In society many of the times it happens that two or more persons have equal eligibility and qualification; still they do not get equal opportunities. It creates frustration. It its very obvious to have a criminal mind when someone has qualification still he/she cannot be able to achieve the level of society’s expectations from them. It enhances stress level and converts their mind to criminal one. Such people choose way of crime to prove their identity and eligibility (Agnew R, 2012).

Criminological theories

As cyber-crime is just another type of crime, it also has the same applications and approaches. One can easily relate the aforesaid criminological theories to Cyber Crime. Cyber-crime does not only mean hacking, it also includes other dangers like bullying and defamation. Irrelevant to the nature of crime, in the background of every crime there is a presence of criminal mind. Criminal Intention of a person cannot be elaborate. The same is a combination of different theories (Holt, 2012).

In Cyber-crime also, if a person conduct such act, he/she must be victim of more than one theory. In this sector, people are expert of their field, whereas availability of jobs and opportunities are not up to the mark. There are always some people in the society who have their wrongful intention in against of the other person. Such people approach to IT experts and offer them good amount to perform their skills for a wrongful intention and deed. This amount motivates these experts to conduct the crime. This situation brings applicability of Rational Choice Theory (Natarajan 2017).

In continuation, when a person comes to know about the advance skills of discussed expert, he/she refer the same to another person, who have equal and same intentions. By this way, Labeling Theory comes becomes applicable in real world. Further, such cyber criminals also motivate to other one and those other people become criminal by developing Social learning theory.

Still in the cases of Cyber-crime, most of the times Strain theory has the main application. As earlier discussed that strain theory is a situation when a person does not get proper response regarding his/her qualification, the same become a criminal mind. It has observed from various cases, that the persons who have good knowledge of information technology are very under rated in society. Since, available jobs in this sector are very few in number in comparison to requirement, experts do not get proper placement. It creates dissatisfaction and irritation. Society has it is own expectations from it is people but failure to meet out those expectations give birth to cyber criminals (Broadhurst, 2017).

Cyber criminals are the frustrating mind who is not able to get the proper platform to show their skills. This is the reason for which they use their skills in a wrongful manner with an intention to hurt others.

To prevent the issues of cyber-crime and political motivated hacking, there are some policies made by the federal government in Australia. These policies have some aspects such as spreading awareness in public, rigidness of cybercrime legislations and enforcement of the same. For Australia, politically motivated hacking is a new threat which needs to be resolve in very less time. It has come to news before some time some suspicious Russian hackers has stolen around 19000 private e-mails of politicians and related persons. In addition to news has also come that china has made cyber-attack to federal government’s sensitive data holder system (Uhlmann, 2015).

To control such hackings and bullying cases, government in Australia has made the aforesaid policies. By raising awareness in public about cyber-crime and politically motivated hacking, this issue has controlled up to a level. Now, people are more aware and possessive about their personal data. Here people refer to politicians and government departments. Further, as federal government has also strengthened it is litigations related to cyber-crime in order to protect this country from cyber-attacks, it is also a good step taken by this government. Now, the same has also it is focus on enforcement of mentioned litigations.

In addition to this Australia was one of the parties to the Council of Europe Convention on Cybercrime (the Budapest Convention) since 2013. Afterwards this country has developed some associations and program like Cyber Safety Pasifika and others in order to reduce the level of cyber-crime (Australia’s International Cyber Engagement Strategy, 2018).

These policies have some issues such as implications and regular developments. As these cyber-attacks are very crucial and dangerous in nature, there is a need to re-design the said policies.  These policies are not enough to response to such dangerous threats. So it may state that further developments are required in this area (The Conversation, 2016). Cyber threats in Australia are too dangerous. Further, politically motivated hacking has highly dangerous potential risk.

Conclusions

In order to provide the conclusion of the aforesaid discussion, it may state here that politically motivated hacking is type of cyber-crime which is increasing very speedily all over global. Such hacking has very dangerous impact and available defenses are not enough to fight with the same. As the same has put adverse impact on an economy as well, this need to be handles with more security. Politically motivated hacking is a kind of cyber-crime.

Behind every crime, some theories does work such theories are known as “Criminological Theories.” The main reason of such hacking is criminological theories of such hackers which motivate them to such conducts. There are some factors which Leeds a person to do conduct like hacking and other cyber-crimes. Majorly Strain theory works behind cyber-crimes. It is a situation where a person become frustrated in the lack of proper opportunities and the same has turned himself/herself into criminal. In addition to this there some criminological theories are also there which motivates a person for cyber-crime.

 In the recent years, Australia has faced so many issues and cases related to politically motivated hacking. For which federal government has made and applied some policies and continuously working on it. Still the relevant policies have some issues as the same are not up to the mark and not enough to protect the crucial data from hackers and unauthorized access. So for this there are some more updations and developments are advisable.

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