“Heike” means a hacker in Chinese. “Paimaozi” is Chinese for a white hat hacker, who is defined as a cybersecurity professional who uses hacking skills legally to identify and fix security vulnerabilities.
About 10 years ago, I interviewed a woman in her 20s who was known as an ace white hat hacker at a major cybersecurity firm in Beijing.
I asked her like a typical layman, “What kind of work do you do every day?”
She answered genially, “I do exactly the same thing as heike—I look for vulnerabilities and weak spots in corporate systems.”
Today, cases of unauthorized access to corporations and personal data leaks are beyond count. I actually believe the word “leak” should be replaced with “theft.”
An Osaka brokerage house announced on Oct. 20 that unauthorized transactions had taken place without customers’ knowledge.
It’s scary to imagine my name, date of birth, address—or any information that proves my identity—flowing out into the pitch-black darkness.
What is being threatened is the very foundation of our lives that no missile or fighter plane can defend. And doesn’t it mean that’s already our nation’s top-priority security issue?
Traces of AI use have been found in the unauthorized access of personal information. If hackers used AI to detect system vulnerabilities humans are not aware of at a high speed, then the parties protecting the systems must counter by utilizing AI themselves.
But beyond that, what would the world look like?
In the workplace of the white hat hacker woman I interviewed in Beijing, there were many teddy bears. She explained that every time she did a good job, she bought herself one as a reward.
No system is perfect. System vulnerabilities will never be completely eliminated.
“My teddy bear population will keep growing,” she said.
—The Asahi Shimbun, Oct. 22
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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.
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