I am a computer scientist and cyber security professional. My research involves me interviewing federal and local law enforcement, prosecutors and defense attorneys, as well as a number of individuals involved in some high profile internet scams. I occasionally consult on data breaches and perform pen testing, usually for small businesses that can't afford to pay a big firm for incident response.I talk to black hats/grey hats all the time. As a result, I've developed a healthy paranoia of some (but not all of) them. They deserve respect and acknowledgement for their skill set, but need to be constantly reminded of the ethics and laws of digital privacy. The best way to do that is to understand them and their motives. While getting inside the mind of other hackers can prove to be difficult (and, definitely, not the best advice I can give), it is the best way I know to understand them. Hopefully, with this understanding, you can protect yourself by being aware of the issues/threats looming online and in our own homes. I am a proponent of the Defense in Depth model because there are too many ways to be targeted and no one strategy works for everything. No matter how good you are, you're gonna get violated if you surf the web. So, you better have a backup plan when prevention fails. I perform research in malware and investigate all sides of the issue. Hopefully, I can contribute to the education and understanding of people regarding online privacy and security.