A Timeless Tale of Cybersecurity and Hacking.

In the present era, it is widely acknowledged that the dangerous perils of cyber criminals and their nefarious hacking activities loom large over us all. However, hacking, as an insidious art, has a far-reaching history that dates back much further than our contemporary times. In fact, it even predates the cinematic masterpiece of 1995, Hackers, which stars the enigmatic Angelina Jolie.

This leads us to the important question of who can be crowned as the ‘first’ hacker in history and the genesis of this ubiquitous practice. Moreover, we ponder upon the larger-than-life magnitude of the most audacious and notorious computer hacks of all time. To illuminate the path toward a better understanding of the cryptic world of cyber criminality, we embark upon an expedition to explore a concise yet comprehensive history of hacking.

Since ancient times, the term “hacking” has been employed to depict the act of cutting in a violent and imprecise manner, tracing its origins back to approximately 1200 B.C. Nonetheless, its connection with technology only surfaced in the mid-twentieth century.

The first recorded instance of “hacking” used in relation to technical expertise was during a meeting of the Technical Model Railroad Club in 1955, where it was utilized to illustrate how the members altered the functions of their sophisticated model trains.

During the 1960s, the term progressively expanded to encompass the burgeoning community of computer enthusiasts. By 1975, The Jargon File had acknowledged one of the accepted definitions of a hacker as “a malicious meddler who tries to discover sensitive information by poking around. Hence password hacker, network hacker.” This marked the first time that the term was officially associated with cybercrime.

Currently, the term “hacker” can be employed to refer to any adept computer programmer, albeit it is typically interchangeable with “security hacker.” A security hacker leverages technical knowledge of software bugs or system vulnerabilities to exploit loopholes in computer systems to gain unauthorized access to sensitive data. This illicit practice is often illegal and can result in severe penalties, such as exorbitant fines or even imprisonment.

John Draper, known by his moniker “Captain Crunch,” has been hailed by many as the pioneer of hacking. Surprisingly, Draper accomplished his feat not by wielding a sophisticated array of hacking tools but by resorting to an unassuming toy whistle procured from a cereal box. Intrigued? Here’s the lowdown:

In the early 1970s, the telephone system represented the largest computer network accessible to the general populace. During that time, telephones were managed by an automated system that utilized specific analog frequencies to establish connections. Draper capitalized on this by exploiting a vulnerability in the system, and the only tool he employed was the free whistle that came with boxes of Cap’n Crunch cereal. The whistle’s shrill notes enabled Draper to place free long-distance and international calls, thereby circumventing the exorbitant phone bills. This ingenious technique was known as “Phreaking” and went on to revolutionize the field of hacking.

Robert Morris, who catapulted to fame as one of the earliest internet hackers, has a significant milestone to his name: he unleashed the world’s inaugural “Denial of Service” (DoS) attack in 1989. Morris’s infamous worm, which he had concocted while at Cornell University in 1988, was the root cause of the attack.

However, Morris has always maintained that his intentions were not malicious; rather, he wanted to expose the vulnerabilities of the system. Alas, owing to a coding glitch, the worm got out of hand and proliferated uncontrollably, causing havoc that endured for several days. The aftermath of the attack was calamitous, with the internet struggling to get back on its feet, and the impact on the public psyche was profound.

It is an inescapable fact that data breaches and hacking episodes are part and parcel of modern-day life. With the frequency of these incidents skyrocketing by the day, it requires a monumental event to seize the public’s attention. In other words, it takes something gargantuan to break the news cycle, something along the lines of millions of accounts being compromised at once.

The following are some of the most significant hacks ever:

Total affected accounts: 3 billion

When: 2013

When we talk about mammoth hacks that shook the world to its core, there’s no denying that Yahoo’s gargantuan data breach back in 2013 takes the crown. However, it wasn’t until three years later in 2016 that Yahoo came clean about the full extent of the damage done. The repercussions were monumental as the sensitive information of all 3 billion users, including passwords, email addresses, security questions, dates of birth, and usernames of users of other Yahoo-owned platforms like Tumblr and Flickr were compromised, resulting in a cybersecurity nightmare of unprecedented proportions.

Total affected accounts: 900 million

When: 2019

First American Financial Corp., a real estate and mortgage insurer in the United States, disclosed that it had exposed an astounding 900 million confidential customer files in May 2019.

There was a lot of extremely sensitive data left exposed to attackers, including Social Security numbers and bank account information, although it’s unclear whether any of these files were breached.

Total affected accounts: 500 million

When: 2014–2018

In the brisk, cool November of 2018, Marriott International, a multinational hotel conglomerate, revealed to the public that a malevolent intruder had surreptitiously infiltrated its impregnable guest reservations systems, effectively compromising the information security of a staggering 500 million of its esteemed clientele. The compromised accounts, which included some of the most sensitive data imaginable, such as names, passport numbers, and credit card details, were mercilessly laid bare and left exposed to the whims and caprices of the malevolent cyber-criminal behind the nefarious breach.

To add salt to the already gaping wound, it was later uncovered that the dastardly cyber-criminal had had the unmitigated temerity to remain ensconced in the system for almost half a decade, clandestinely pillaging and plundering the compromised accounts at will, all while insidiously concealing their tracks from the watchful gaze of Marriott International’s security personnel.

Total affected accounts: 412 million

When: 2016

Adult FriendFinder, a swinger website, reported that up to 412 million users may have had their personal information compromised in its second hack of 2016.

Total affected accounts: 150 million

When: 2018

In the nascent days of the year 2018, a disastrous event of unimaginable proportion unfurled, as the world-renowned fitness app, MyFitnessPal, was maliciously targeted and infiltrated by unscrupulous cyber-criminals, who proceeded to brazenly abscond with the deeply personal and confidential information of a mammoth 150 million loyal customers. This pilfered information, which included the likes of usernames, email addresses, IP addresses, and heavily encrypted passwords, was then unceremoniously hawked off on the black market for all and sundry to purchase and exploit to their hearts’ content.

In the aftermath of this pernicious breach, MyFitnessPal was left with no recourse but to grudgingly concede to the loss of sensitive customer data and implore its customers to promptly and conscientiously change their passwords as a preventative measure. However, to add insult to injury, the fitness app provider obstinately refused to divulge the staggering extent of the damage wrought by the malevolent cyber-criminals, leaving the masses to languish in a state of perplexity and apprehension, with scant to no clue as to the severity and scope of the breach.

Total affected accounts: 143 million

When: 2017

In the year of our Lord 2017, a formidable storm of inestimable magnitude and consequence tore through the insurmountable fortress of Equifax, a leading credit reporting agency, effectively laying bare the personal data and confidential credit histories of a whopping 143 million unsuspecting and vulnerable souls. The gravity of the situation was exacerbated by the sheer enormity and significance of Equifax’s corpus of confidential financial information, which, if left to the machinations of the unscrupulous and malevolent cyber-criminals responsible for the breach, could have led to irreparable and catastrophic damage being inflicted upon the unsuspecting victims.

The potential consequences of the breach were truly seismic, as the cyber-criminals, with their insidious and nefarious intent, had the unfettered ability to manipulate, misuse, and exploit the personal and financial data of millions of American citizens with unparalleled impunity, putting them at risk of ruinous financial losses, theft of identity, and untold anguish and heartache.

Reference:

https://cybernews.com/security/brief-history-of-cybersecurity-and-hacking/

Bug Zero is a bug bounty, crowdsourcing platform for security testing. The platform is the intermediatory entity that enables client organizations to publish their service endpoints so that bug hunters (security researchers / ethical hackers) registered in the platform can start testing the endpoints without any upfront charge. Bug hunters can start testing as soon as a client organization publishes a new program. Bug Zero also offers private bug bounty programs for organizations with high-security requirements.

Bug Zero is available for both hackers and organizations.

For organizations and hackers, register with Bug Zero for free, and let’s make cyberspace safe.