User:Rokald77/sandbox

Motivations
Motivations takes a look at the reasoning behind cyberattacks. Three common motivations include but are not limited to political, personal, and financial reasons.

Political
Also known as Hacktivism, cyberterrorism, or cyberwarfare, some cyberattacks are “hacking for a cause". With the Russo-Ukrainian War starting in 2014, there has been an increase in political cyberattacks. These attacks have either been sponsored by their government, such as the North Korean-sponsored group Lazarus, or they have been carried out by anti-establishment protesters like Anonymous. Cyberattacks is a popular form of attack among terrorists or activists for the extensive damages it can cause to their targets and the attention it can generate. These attacks also causes the target organization and the public to panic.

Personal
Some attacks may be motivated for personal gain. Hackers within a subculture that encourage such activities may attempt to show off their technical skills by shutting down or causing as much damage as possible to a company’s websites for validation from their peers. Some attackers may also just be disgruntled employees.

Financial
One common reason behind cyberattacks is for financial reasons. Some individuals may be in insecure social or economic situations and may see ransoming a company as a viable option for money. Because malware-for-services have become more affordable in the past years, it has become more accessible to buy ransomware and use them to commit cybercrimes. The attacker evaluates between risk and reward to determine their motivation and targets.