The ethical aspect of ethical hacking

Ethical hacking is the process of checking the vulnerabilities and insecurities present inside a system. It provides a way to leverage a system’s weaknesses, exploit them, and attack the system through these loose ends. Why attack your own software system? If we were careless enough to deploy our software system without testing for vulnerabilities, hackers would take advantage of them.

To prevent actual hackers from performing system penetration to compromise it, we test computer systems, networks, and the software environments deployed to identify any security vulnerabilities with enumeration, scanning, and actual hacking. While doing so, we ensure no destruction is caused to our system and no data loss occurs. It’s like a blessing in disguise. Our only intention is to identify faults in our systems so that they can survive cyber attacks and not fail. However, ethical hacking has many grey areas that expose ethical and legal impediments.

Ethical impediments

Professional ethics are the building blocks of an organization’s code of conduct and help professionals make risky decisions when faced with ethical dilemmas in their careers. This extends beyond any field, whether it be ethical hacking, like cloud computing or project management; a professional may have to choose between their personal beliefs and professional responsibilities, where they must be reliably consistent and loyal to the firm they work for, and advance their interests first. An ethical hacker may face ethical dilemmas about confidentiality, privacy, security, honesty, or integrity. For example, an ethical question that may arise could be, “Is exposing and exploiting a system’s weaknesses for personal gains, even with the software developer’s permission, ever morally correct?’’

Moreover, some white hats (ethical hackers) consider it their responsibility to expose the wrongdoings commonly practiced by individuals in their organization in the name of testing software vulnerabilities. The upper management is sometimes blindsided, intentionally, by these illegal practices carried out at the lower tiers for personal gain. This might not be the case in all ethical dilemmas, but it’s important to realize that no matter how saintly exposing frauds may feel, these actions can have severe consequences for both the ethical hacker and the company itself. In such cases, an ethical hacker should practice the ethical practices carried out in their firm.

Legal impediments

Another important question is who should be held accountable if any harm is imposed on the system while checking for system vulnerabilities. Let’s take the example of Anabelle, a professional ethical hacker assigned to identify system vulnerabilities in an E-commerce web application developed by employee X for their company’s loyal customers. Should we blame employee X for doing a poor job at securing the company’s internal data and software product by practicing low-security standards and with that has failed to keep the system safe, or should we blame Anabelle for harming the system in the pursuit of identifying any system insecurities? Who would the senior management choose to fire, Anabelle or employee X, for losing a loyal client? To evaluate the ripple effect of these legal impediments, we require a strong ethical code of conduct and laws that help us navigate these uncharted territories. At the end of the day, the client may launch a lawsuit against the company or its employees when things go south, and they don’t get a secure working product.

How to navigate the gray areas

Seek consent: White hackers need the right approval and heads-up before hacking a system.
Think over the consequences: We must consider the damage our actions can bring about before getting our hands dirty. They just end up shattering the foundations of your software system or successfully helping you lose loyal customers, sending your company toward bankruptcy. Customers also develop trust issues if the company can’t deliver as expected and can’t be relied on.
Be transparent: Always communicate openly and clearly about your true intent. When discovering technical vulnerabilities, the ethical hacker should refrain from keeping these findings to themselves but rather ensure that the concerned persons are well aware of them so they can quickly find ways to address them.
Stay up to date: Companies need to ensure that their resources are not blindsided by any legalities in several jurisdictions, especially those their clients belong. We must stay updated on changing laws and regulations relating to cybersecurity by various governments.

Test yourself

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