Pros And Cons Of Hacktivism

Hacktivism - Does It Do More Good or Bad? First of all, what is it? The Cambridge Dictionary website states that: “hacktivism is the activity of using computers to try to achieve political change, for example by attacking websites or illegally entering another computer system.” There are many different kinds of hacktivists with all sorts of different motives. Regardless what the motive may be, the topic in general has been receiving lots of controversy in recent years as it’s becoming more of a common occurrence. Here are some arguable questions: Is hacktivism a serious cybercrime issue or can it be an efficient means of social protest? To a lot of people the topic can get a bit blurry in regards to if it’s acceptable or not. However, I side with the law and consider them criminals committing criminal acts and that is how it should be considered by all. Regardless if some hacktivists have good intentions, not only is it usually still illegal, but I feel that if it were to be considered more acceptable then we would see more hacktivists with nefarious intentions popping up much more often.

I think that there is a fine line between the “cybercrime criminal” and the “social protest” type …show more content…
A lot of people think that hacktivism is an efficient means of social protest, and even an ethical means. As stated in another Opposing Viewpoints document, Graham Armstrong states that: “I believe that yes, hacktivism is a genuine form of protest.” He talks about how hacktivism should be a last resort after all other options have been exhausted but yes it is a genuine form of protest in the end. I feel like you could compare that mind set to something like bringing a couple aces in your sleeve to a poker game. Then saying “oh, well I’m not going to cheat unless I start losing, then ill pull the aces out as a last resort.” To me it’s a viewpoint that is just trying to justify an act that is