Sometimes the biggest fall the hardest, and corporations are no ?exception.
Last week, Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. was hacked, and its servers crashed. Their computers rendered useless, employees had to work using paper and pens. In such a large company, that’s a problem.
The hackers, reportedly called Guardians of Peace, posted messages on company computers saying, “We’ve already warned you, and this is just the beginning,” and, “We continue till our request be met.”
Rolling Stone magazine reported the hackers later released four Sony films on Bit Torrent before their scheduled theatrical release.
It is still unclear why the hackers targeted Sony.
Maybe they were angry at the company’s ?practices.
Maybe they were just tech-savvy rebels having fun.
But no matter the motive, it does show the perceptions we have about large corporations and the tension they can cause.
Large corporations aren’t a new trend.
Andrew Carnegie and John Rockefeller created business empires more than a century ago, and businesses haven’t stopped growing since.
They’ve helped our economy grow, helped build jobs and innovate and make America strong.
Wal-Mart had net sales of $279.4 billion this year and employs 1.4 million people in the United States.
No one can deny the economic might of these companies.
But they also create disparity.
They widen the gap between the rich and poor.
They exist to profit, which isn’t inherently bad.
But they have tremendous economic and political clout and, if left unchecked, can undermine others for their own gain.
These corporations are also easy targets.
They collect massive amounts of personal data, which is a large prize for some thieves.
The credit card hack of Target last year shows some people will exploit the size of these companies for profit, even ?illegally.
Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, among other court cases, has solidified the legal standing of corporations as entities with some of the rights of ?individuals.
However, corporations are not people.
They do not function like people.
They have far greater reach and resources.
I suspect these hackers targeted Sony partially because they believed they were doing good by knocking them down a peg.
It feels good to take on the big opponent, no matter what they’ve done to deserve it.
And as long as corporations continue to spend money to get what they want, these clashes with hackers and the public in general will continue.
As long as David has a way to take on a perceived Goliath, the stones will keep being thrown.
sckroll@indiana.edu