A website hacked by Chinese hackers. (File photo/CFP)
Despite increasing recognition within the industry, Chinese hackers have been unable to shake their bad reputation, according to Beijing’s Economic Observer.
Chinese online security firm Qihoo 360 is a major employer of white-hat hackers, whose job is to detect weaknesses in software and computer systems.
One of the hacker teams employed by Qihoo 360 is led by a person only identified as “MJ0011″ who has won the world’s largest computing contest Pwn2Own.
Another hacker working at Qihoo 360, known as “Ir0nSmith,” appeared on an annual Consumer Day TV show on March 15 and showed how hackers can use public Wi-Fi to acquire the personal data of people linked to a wireless connection.
Although hackers working for big companies are now paid well, things were quite different before 2010, the newspaper said.
According to Wang Qi, who worked for Microsoft and now heads cyber security team Keen Team, hackers in China did not have an easy time finding a job.
The newspaper said people working in cyber security were paid less than the average salary in the technology sector before 2010, and American firm McAfee took advantage by hiring hackers from China.
Poor job prospects and pay also drove hackers into illegal activities, creating software and viruses for fraud schemes and criminal endeavors. Though an average hacker can now make millions of yuan a month, the profession as a whole remains burdened by a negative image, Wang said.
Qihoo 360, internet firm Tencent and e-commerce giant Alibaba have competed for cyber security professionals and driven up their wages since 2010, and the leak of confidential documents by Edward Snowden further boosted demand for hackers and hacker pay.
Another reason for the negative image of hackers in China is the lack of courses on computer hacking at Chinese universities.
Efforts made by prominent hackers in China to reverse their unsavory reputation, such as appearing at computer hacking contests, have begun to change the tide, the newspaper said.
“The apparent change began the year before last, when people in the hacking world turned their focus to technology. They stopped talking about how much money they were making but who cracked Tesla first. At least the business is seeing a positive direction,” Wang said.
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