M6D1: Hacktivism and Cyberterrorism discussion reply

Responded to the post, be respectful in your discussion. Healthy debates are welcomed. Be sure to maintain academic rigor and professionalism at all times.

Cyberterrorism is defined by Webster as terrorist activities intended to damage or disrupt vital computer systems My own personal definition is that it is the use of technology in oder to disrupt or destroy certain facets in society in order to make a statement for some personal gain. A good example of these instances include denial-of-service attacks, such as Russia’s Yandex DDoS, an attack which lasted from August until September (Marrow, 2021). Hacktivism, in the opposite sense, is defined as computer hacking intended to further the goals of political and social movements. An example of this would be WikiLeaks, which is politically based and released emails about Hillary Clinton during the 2016 election. 
The major difference here is that hacktivism is more of a form of cyberterrorism, fueled by protest and discontent over a particular political policy or party, whereas cyberterrorism in a whole is aimed directly at harming someone or something. Hacktivism can turn into Cyberterrorism, but the not the other way around.
Technology has increased these risks due to the increase use of the Internet and its users, which cause a need for increased security measures. It allows for terrorism to “reach out” without the need for ads and radio broadcasts (Bogdanoski, et al), and the continued use of Virtual Private Networks, or VPNs, can make tracing these particular groups even harder. With this increase in cyber threats, the US government has implemented controls in the realm of cybersecurity, signing an executive order to improve the nation’s cybersecurity, and making jobs in the cybersecurity field highly sought after, with fields in the IT field hiring at alarming rates and seeking certifications such as Network+, Security+,  and CISSP. 
 
 
 
References
Bogdanoski, M., and Petreski, D. Cyber Terrorism-Global Security Threat. International Scientific Defense, Security, and Peace Journal. Retrieved October 6, 2021, from https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/35330211.pdf  (Links to an external site.)
Merriam-Webster. Cyberterrorism. Merriam-Webster.com. Retrieved October 7, 2021, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cyberterrorism (Links to an external site.)
Reuters. (2021). Russia’s Yandex says it repelled biggest DDoS attack in history. Reuters.com. Retrieved October 6, 2021, from https://www.reuters.com/technology/russias-yandex-says-it-repelled-biggest-ddos-attack-history-2021-09-09/ (Links to an external site.)