Are Hackers Good or Evil?

As always, news seems to filter in a little more slowly on the weekends when it comes to sites like Digg and Reddit. The majority of the news stories are from the major classic news sites like CNN and MSNBC. It makes sense right? People are enjoying time with their families, working out, watching a sporting event, reading a book, anything. They are simply decompressing from the previous week and re-energizing for the upcoming week that seems to move in too fast!

Well one of the major news site stories yesterday caught my eye. The reason it did so was the due to the way it was written and what it was written about. The story came from CNN.com and it was about a small group of hackers from China (also known as "crackers" for their ability to crack programming languages and code) who were making a bold statement by supposedly infiltrating several very secure mainframes and databases in the U.S., Germany, Britain and France.

Reports keep filing in that the a surprising amount of information has been lost or corrupt since several hits on the Pentagon last year. Now we come find that these hits aren't coming from one single hacker or a massive group of hackers, but rather a couple of young guys sitting in their apartment in China or any number of smaller hacking "units."

But the real question is: IS THIS A BAD THING?

This group of hackers has found "backdoors" and "loopholes" in government and private company firewalls and have been able to access this with little to no formal training. They simply know how a website works, how to do some simple coding for a vast number of program languages and that's it.

This should be the number one indicator for Fortune 500 companies and governments alike; YOUR SECURITY ISN'T GOOD ENOUGH!

So why not use this information and start working with the issue. If these guys can break what you spend millions of dollars on to sleep at night, you better start losing some sleep because they will keep breaking it until you fix. They are handing you opportunities left and right and you better be grabbing them now.

My suggestions:

#1. Take sensitive data offline. The last time I checked, I can't say that I've ever heard of anyone walking about the "TOP SECRET" basement at Langley or the White House with a cart full of files and never returning. (This is similar to the Windows notice this week about not putting a password on your machine to ensure no one hacks you.)

#2. You thought you had the "best" working for you; well you just found out you DON'T! These guys are doing this from their apartment for enjoyment and to make a name for themselves. Why not? I'm pretty if anyone could do it and get away with like they are, everyone would do it! I would!

#3. Take advantage and use common sense. These guys are doing that. They are thinking and behaving like anyone with some basic logical thinking capabilities would do.

I didn't view this article as something to be scared off, but rather as a great warning to the governments of the world, Fortune 500 companies and anyone with a website or blog.

Secure yourself online. Take the appropriate measures to make sure you aren't embarrassed. Be smart. Use common sense. No one is completely anonymous.

Think about it!

Have a great day!

Why Do You Blog?

Why do you blog?

Do you do it because you love writing and have a lot of stuff you think someone else in this world of 6+ billion people might want to actually read what you are saying?

Do you do it because you are pretty damn smart when it comes to a topic?

Do you blog because sometimes you just need to let it all out?

Do you blog because someone has asked you to put your thoughts down someplace?

Do you blog because you are just too lazy to write a book?

If you said yes to any of these: CONGRATULATIONS! You are doing exactly what millions of other people are doing and you are doing it for the right reason!

Next question(s).

Have you ever:

Written a blog entry with pretty much the same material as something you've read somewhere else recently?

Written about something you know nothing about just because it was the "hot topic of the day" on Digg/Fark/Reddit or any other user-driven news site?

Wrote a blog entry for the sole purpose of gaining attention, "fame" or just because you are a selfish prick?

If you answered yes to any or all of these, stop what you are doing and re-evaluate why you blog. The blogosphere is full of people who enjoy writing and are good at what they do. They know their "stuff" and there is a reason they are riding high on Digg!

It's amazing how many times I read something yesterday in the Digg Upcoming section about the Apple SDK, iPhone 2.0 and Spore release coming in June and September. I'm sorry but if the technology blogs from websites like Lifehacker, Ars Technica, Wired and Macworld, to name a few, are covering this and providing all the information, why do I need to read it from 32 other bloggers that are just repeating everything that has already been said.

Broken record news reports don't suck people into your blog or website people.

Be creative! Use some ingenuity!

I'll "Digg" you and "Shout" it to all my friends if you come up with something worth reading!

Please return the favor if you agree!

Have a great day!

Did you read that article about...Reddit!

This week, I've had a lot of focus on the blogging world and the exposure that so many of us want! I think it's a good idea to keep up with that theme for at least another entry.

Yesterday, I talked about the great, FREE service called BlogRush. Easy exposure through every blogger that has installed that particular widget on their website. You get to see what other sites might be interesting while you visit your favorites.

Today, I'm going into a little web service called Reddit. This particular site is basically a Digg.com but it seems to be a growing website! I've installed the widget on the right hand side (The little white box with a number and an alien-esque creature) and because of that, my hits has honestly doubled in the past 3 days!

It's UNBELIEVABLE! You post a blog entry, submit it to Reddit and watch the hits roll in.

Now granted, this isn't necessarily a good thing if the users don't really even read your blog but this does increase your chances of finding people who enjoy your content and what you have to offer in the huge world of the Web.

I suggest you try it and watch your readers level fly high! I could be wrong, but I doubt it! PROVE ME WRONG!

Link up, subscribe, Digg me, Reddit me, post a comment and enjoy!

Have a great day!