<?xml version="1.0" encoding="ISO-8859-1"?> <docID>329001</docID> <postdate>2024-09-13 07:59:41</postdate> <headline>‘Ethical hackers’ to focus skills on police cold cases</headline> <body><p><img class=" wp-image-329002" src="https://citynews.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/IMG_7808-rotated-e1726178265561.jpg" alt="" width="900" height="600" /></p> <caption>Hundreds of ethical hackers will set to work on missing persons cases to dig up new clues</caption> <p><span class="kicker-line">By <strong>Luke Costin</strong> in Sydney</span></p> <p><strong>Hundreds of people will blow the dust off five missing person cold cases with the aim of generating fresh leads for police in a nationwide "hackathon".</strong></p> <p>The event being staged in all capital cities as well as remotely on Friday involves more than 650 people with high-level open intelligence skills to those with a handy knack for scrolling Facebook comments.</p> <p>Some come with their own software, others use training provided in the event lead-up.</p> <p>Event founder Linda Cavanagh said a previous event in 2020 generated about 40 new leads across 12 cases.</p> <p>"We've had had people finding comments on Airbnb posts, we've had drone footage, imagery as well," she told AAP.</p> <p>"The majority does come from (the missing person's) digital footprint - the minute you touch the internet, you leave a trace."</p> <p>Narrowing the number of cases to five will hopefully encourage deeper dives and provide the crucial information detectives need to unlock each cold case.</p> <p>A new challenge will be a person who disappeared at sea while on their own boat, likely leading to people trawling for geoimagery in the relevant timeframe.</p> <p>Ms Cavanagh said the information uncovered often become a telling moment for participants themselves.</p> <p>"They'll say 'I've just pulled together the narrative on someone's life - what could someone find on me?'</p> <p>"It's a bit eye-opening from a cyber perspective."</p> <p>The event is also an opportunity to recast the term hacker, so often portrayed by media as a shadowy figure in a hoodie looking at dark screens.</p> <p>"This shines a light on ethical hackers - they're there to do good," Ms Cavanagh said.</p> <p>"Often they do vulnerability research and find potential intrusion points."</p> <p>Cybersecurity expert Jason Murrell agrees.</p> <p>"The event highlights cyber security's critical role in protecting our nation, and it's a powerful reminder of what we can achieve when we come together for a common cause," the Australian Cyber Network chair said.</p> <p>The event runs for five hours.</p> </body>