Discussion – Reconnaissance and Encryption

Discussion – Reconnaissance and Encryption

Reconnaissance is a term used to describe the act of exploring an area or inspection with the main objective of gathering information.  This is a sort of preliminary survey or research done to identify the vulnerabilities of the area, serving as the first phase of an attack. Notably, it does not always have to be about looking for vulnerabilities but can be applied as a research strategy to collect data before making a decision. An example of such reconnaissance is exploring an area of town before deciding whether to open a pub in the said area. Reconnaissance can also be done online, where one collects data on something like a security system to identify its weaknesses or personal social media profiles to collect personal data. On whether reconnaissance should be legal, I would argue that it would depend on the context of the situation. For instance, reconnaissance to detect vulnerabilities so they can be fixed and have been given permission to do it is legal. However, without one’s permission and with the intention of causing harm, it is illegal, just as stated by the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) in the U.S. (Schapiro, 2020).

Encryption is essential to protect personal and sensitive data, such as financial transactions, private conversations, and confidential information, like people in a witness protection program. However, the downside is that in the wrong hands, encryption can not only perpetuate crime but also help criminals get away with their crimes since law enforcement agencies cannot access the data due to the encryptions used (Pisaric, 2021). Nevertheless, cybersecurity experts argue that the benefits of encryption outweigh the downsides, especially regarding securing vast amounts of sensitive data, ensuring personal privacy, and the security of online communications. In order to counter the downsides of encryption, companies that make this software should be required to also make programs that can break the encryptions, and that should be made available to law enforcement agencies once a search warrant is issued.

References

Pisaric, M. (2021). Encryption as a challenge for European law enforcement agencies. Australasian Policing, 13(1), 30–34.

Schapiro, Z. (2020). Computer Fraud: Private Parties Dictating Criminal Behavior. In Boston College Intellectual Property and Technology Forum (Vol. 2020, pp. 1–11).

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Discussion – Reconnaissance and Encryption

How does an attacker use reconnaissance to gather information on their targets, should this be legal and why?
Encryption hides what you’re doing and makes it nearly impossible if you committed a crime to gather enough forensic evidence due to the encryption. Should the public be allowed to use encryption? why or why not?
Feel free to start your own discussions on here as well. I want you guys to be interactive and learn from me and the rest of the class