The problem just carries on growing as the US and British Governments respond with regular tired old blustery announcements about fears and their plans to deal with the ever growing problem of cyber attacks.
One thing that amazes me is that our governments appear not to know that once proven to be successful hi-tech bank robbers, or other type of hacker, that such proven success can land the ex-hacker a lucrative prominent position in cyber security.
A hacker I studied in the last century is now a University of Cambridge don! Can you do a little detective work and figure out out who he is from reading the article David Mann and I wrote for our award winning research on the hacking of Rupert Murdoch's Sky pay-to-view encryption service?
This "poacher turned gamekeeper" phenomenon is for the most part peculiar to high tech crime. I have several examples of some of the most notorious cyber criminals now working in prominent positions in cyber security and elsewhere as advertised experts in the field OF information technology.
Whilst I am reluctant to list their names and positions, I do think our good wishes and concerns for the continued successful rehabilitation of notorious hackers is something we need to weigh against the problem that their "success stories" may encourage hacking and hacktivism as a sensible fast-track route to top jobs in society.
We need to know more about that risk in order to assess the risk that "the establishment" that so fears hackers is unknowingly allowing others to make hacking look like a sensible career choice.
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