Hector Monsegur once sat on the FBI’s Most Wanted list.
As "Sabu," the infamous hacker behind LulzSec and a key player in Anonymous, he was a digital outlaw exposing government vulnerabilities. On the other side of the law stood Chris Tarbell, the FBI agent responsible for infiltrating Anonymous and leading the takedown of the notorious Silk Road marketplace.
Now, years later, they sit side by side—not as adversaries, but as allies. Together, they share an unusual friendship and a common goal: strengthening cybersecurity by exposing the dangers that lurk in the shadows of the internet.
At a recent fireside chat at Zero Trust World 2025 in Florida, the two reflected on their pasts, the evolution of hacking, and the ethical lines that have blurred in the age of cryptocurrency and AI.
A former hacker and an FBI agent walk into a conference…
“You arrested him,” the moderator quips, gesturing toward Monsegur. “And yet, here you are—smiling. How does that happen?”
Monsegur grins. “Well, it’s nothing. I still don’t like him,” he jokes. “Nah, for sure, we’re good friends now. But it took time. I mean, at the end of the day, I had to make a choice—spend the rest of my life in prison or actually do something meaningful.”
That choice wasn’t easy. When Tarbell’s team knocked on Monsegur’s door, he was staring down a maximum sentence of 125 years for his cybercrimes. "Chris sat me down and said, ‘Do you really want to spend the rest of your life in a cell because you hacked into a government server?’ And I realized—this isn’t a game anymore.”
Tarbell chimes in, reflecting on how the experience changed him, too. "Hector made me see criminals as humans. Before, I saw crime in black and white. You arrest the bad guy, put them away, and that’s the end of the story. But working with Hector, I realized—people don’t always start off as criminals. Sometimes, they get radicalized into it.”
The unlikely duo now work together to educate businesses, law enforcement, and everyday users about real-world cybersecurity threats. And if there’s one thing they both agree on, it’s this: hacking isn’t what it used to be.
The changing ethics of hacking
“Back in the day, hackers had a code,” Monsegur explains. “We were curious. We wanted to understand how systems worked, where they were vulnerable. But it never would have occurred to us to hack a hospital for ransom.”
Tarbell nods. “Exactly. But now? That line is gone. And you know what changed? Money.”
The introduction of cryptocurrency has completely altered the hacking landscape. In the past, cybercriminals had to be careful—stealing money meant moving it through traditional banking systems, leaving a trail for law enforcement. Now, with crypto, that barrier is gone.
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