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1title: Hacking, a full stomach, and ethics
2date: 2013-09-11 13:37:00
3updated: 2013-09-15 17:20:57
4author: erdgeist
5tags: update, hackerethik, hacken
6
7In a pre-print of an interview from the next issue of the club magazine "Die Datenschleuder", the Chaos Computer Club (CCC) tells the story of a hacker whose software was sold to several governments in the Middle East (among others) that used it to spy on the opposing political forces. To which means and ends should hackers use their talents? In today's world, is it still possible to ignore what happens with the results of one's own drive to hack, research and tinker?
8
9<!-- TEASER_END -->
10
11At its previous congress, the 29C3, the CCC posed the rhetorical
12question whether the consequences of our actions are "not my
13department". They had a reason to do so. In an increasing fashion,
14governments, the military, and intelligence agencies regard networks and
15digital devices as a field of conflict which may very well escalate to a
16war. That is why highly specialized experts in the area of IT security
17must face the question what they do with their talents, and for whom
18they decide to work.
19
20Could it be that hackers who want to survive have no choice but to
21profit from the ongoing militarization of the digital world and rent
22their talents out to the highest bidder?
23
24Immediately before the 32nd anniversary of the CCC's founding, the
25editors of "Die Datenschleuder" were offered an interview by a dropout
26from one of those shady businesses that have recently come under heavy
27critique. Now that it has become unfashionable to ship surveillance
28equipment to countries that have a rather economical relationship to
29human rights, glimpses into the dark side of IT security research get
30more common. However, this interview is the first time we are really
31able to shed a little light on how easy it is to slip on the wrong side
32of the tracks, but also that this way is not necessarily a one way
33street.
34
35The story of this hacker, which we have [documented here as a
36pre-print](http://ds.ccc.de/097/ds097-ausstieg-gewissen.pdf "Die Datenschleuder 097 – Letzter Ausstieg Gewissen"),
37vividly describes how working in this area of IT resembles a walk along
38a razor's edge, and how easy it is to lose one's way and act contrary to
39one's own moral standards without even noticing it.
40
41It also tells about the immense efforts that need to be undertaken to
42regain a clean consciousness. It may be necessary to end friendships,
43take financial and social risks for oneself, one's friends and one's
44family and accept inconvenient truths – and draw consequences.
45
46But it is also a story full of hope that ends – for now – with a
47successful middle sized company with bright perspectives for the future
48that is not dependent on customers with a shady or military background.
49
50Therefore, the story is a wake up call for all those who have ever found
51themselves in a similar situation and think they have to choose between
52their conscience and their social and financial commitments. There is a
53life after dropping out of the field of surveillance and digital assault
54– and it is better than before.