Econintersect: Cyberhacking affects almost every level of society, from stolen Facebook logins to secrets stolen from the Pentagon, and the costs of this crime are measured in the billions. According to the Digital Forensics Association (DFA), the global cost of data breaches from 2005 to 2010 is estimated at $156 billion. The threat becomes more pervasive as the world increasingly gets connected, and the costs are likely to rise as a result.
What is Cyberhacking?
Cyberhacking is a broad term that refers to the act of manipulating computer networks or systems for various purposes. The motivations behind these acts vary. Some want to make a political statement, some want to profit by it and some just want to wreak havoc. Whatever the motivations, however, the risks and damages dealt from cyberhacking creates a significant problem for individuals, corporations and governments.
How Does Cyberhacking Impact the Economy?
In the DFA analysis, the estimated $156 billion was considered to be on the low end. The study indicated that 35 percent of the incidents didn’t list a cost for damages, meaning the expenses were likely even higher.
The threat has led to the development of a huge security industry, valued at almost $1 billion a year as of 2012, according to the Seattle Times. Even when cyberhacking causes no measurable financial damage, it still takes its toll by creating the sense of an ever-present threat. No organization wants its information compromised, and they are willing to pay to keep it protected.
The most recent cyberhacking attacks have originated in China, although it is unclear just what China is gaining from the practice. According to U.S. News & World Report, the communist country doesn’t appear to be collecting any information from the cyberattacks that it did not already possess. China continues to blatantly disregard intellectual property rights, an issue for decades. China may be obtaining easier access to trade secrets, but it has been stealing such information for years.
However, the cost to U.S. businesses and organizations remains significant. According to the Washington Post, some economists estimate the cost of cyberhacking to the U.S. economy at 0.1 – 0.5 percent of the Gross Domestic Product, amounting to anywhere from $25 to $100 billion. China is one of the worst offenders in the cyberhacking arena.
How Cyberhacking Impacts the Everyday Person and How to Protect Oneself
Cyberhacking affects anyone who stores information on a computer or smartphone, and anyone who connects a device to the Internet. Information kept on these devices is always vulnerable to theft by cyberhackers, making cyberprotection services valuable to almost everyone.
The most familiar threat to the average person is identity theft. The cyberhacker does not even need to be interested in identity theft to put a person at risk. The Washington Post discussed the trial of a hacker who stole the email addresses of 120,000 people from AT&T customers, and then gave them to another website. Little damage was done by the act, but it does point to the ripple effect of cyberhacking. A hacker only needs to obtain the information and share it for more unsavory criminals to take advantage of it.
An Ongoing Threat
Cyberhacking is not going away. The costs will only increase as the world increasingly relies on computers, unwittingly making information available to these types of criminals. From individuals to the largest organizations and governments, protection from cyberhackers will only become more necessary as time goes on.
