The Digital Tsunami: Hackers
2016 is seeing some interesting talent practices emerge. Recently, the FBI paid hackers more than a million dollars to crack the software padlock that prevented the government from accessing data from a suspect's iPhone. Apple had earlier declined to oblige the government on grounds of protecting the consumer's privacy.Apple has always bucked convention and never paid techies who reported flaws in their software or firmware. They would at best put the names of these techies on their website to acknowledge their contribution. That is about to change.
Incentive or acknowledgement
At a conference of hackers called the Black Hat conference they announced tangible rewards for hackers. Hackers who could find vulnerabilities in customer's data would be paid anywhere up to fifty thousand dollars for each flaw they identify. Hackers who point out vulnerabilities in firmware will get a payout of $200,000. Will these financial incentives now encourage hackers to make a quick buck? Or is Apple merely acknowledging the necessity of supplementing their tech talent pool with a contingent workforce - the hackers.Facebook and Google have regularly leveraged them to point out vulnerabilities in their software. Automobile manufacturers are inviting hackers to test drive the software as cars become platforms to deliver technology. No wonder, Apple and Google are competing with car manufacturers to take control of the data generated by the car and the driver.
From babies to presidents
Even presidential candidates will have to learn to work with hackers because a cyberattack can leave any government red faced. There is a "Hackers for Hillary" group that promises to work with her should she occupy the Oval Office.What is even more worrisome that electronic toys are not safe from hackers. Baby monitors and toys have been hacked recently. More than 6.3 million children's accounts and 4.9 million children's accounts of toy manufacturer VTech were hacked last year giving hackers access to photos and chat logs.
Different strokes from different folks
The number and variety of hackers is growing. Organizations have to learn to recognize the presence of this almost invisible group and learn to work with them just as they would with any temporary or contingent workforce. Every individual in the permanent workforce needs a different motivator. Some work for money, some for fame, some get inspired by the mission of the organization. Hackers are no different.There are “white hat” hackers, who will find and fix weak spots in the software with the idea of improving it. They are motivated by just the challenge of solving a complex puzzle. They will spend days trying to decipher encrypted information. Some hackers are pranksters who love embarrassing an organization or government by showing the world how clueless are to cyberattacks.Then there are politically motivated hackers who will attack or protect regimes whose political views they resonate with. The cause motivates them. The hacker group Anonymous defaces websites of organizations and governments just to teach them a lesson.Some governments have employed buildings full of hackers and use them to steal intellectual property, steal defense secrets and even deactivate the missile systems of enemy states. Among hackers there is a popular phrase that says that there are two kinds of companies - those that that are aware that they have been hacked and those that are blissfully unaware that their sensitive data is already being regularly accessed and misused by the dark web.
The new contingent workforce
Data is the new oil. Sensors will get embedded everywhere from wearables to gadgets and automobiles. Our digital trails and choices are being recorded by websites, credit cards, and apps constantly. This data is piling up in countless servers. So far hackers have remained invisible.The digital tsunami may force organizations to learn to attract, retain and nurture the new contingent workforce - hackers.------------Join me on Twitter @AbhijitBhaduriA slightly modified version of this appeared in The Indian Economist