The Scattered Spider is a group of young adults that was responsible for a recent cyberattack into MGM and Caesars Entertainment. The hackers took the social security numbers and other valuable information of many Caesar Loyalty Program members. This is the second data leak that the casino has experienced within the last five years. We have seen the negative impact hacking can have, how about when its used for the better?
The term ethical hacking refers to the practice of exposing security risks in order to prevent data breaches by non-ethical hackers. Many tech companies have hired these experts in order to avoid user’s personal data being leaked - such as the case in a cyberattack against the Pentagon earlier this year.
The Viterbi School of Engineering offers courses on Ethical Hacking which opens a discussion on whether hacking is important in today’s world.
Anthony Anderson, an employee at USC, has mixed opinions on hacking and believes that it can be used for good or bad.
Anthony Anderson: I feel like it has its ups and downs. Like I’ve. I’ve seen people do it for bad, and I’ve seen people do it for good. And I feel like it can be, like, essential because the people who have good intentions on it, they can help bring like peace or like help people save themselves from being scammed.
Thomazi Jury, a junior studying Theatre, believes that having trained students may improve security measures.
Thomazi Jury: I think definitely on like a protective measure on just making sure that everything feels secure. I think it’d be good to have somebody just who is specialized in that area to, you know, take charge of the situation.
The Scattered Spider hackers were paid over $15 million dollars by Caesars Entertainment as a ransom. MGM refused to pay their $15 million ransom but ensured their customers that their data has been deleted.
For Annenberg Media, I’m Susan Nyirenda