It’s time to start thinking about cybersecurity for sharks. Yes, the fish.

In 2015, three scientists sent an anguished note to the journal Conservation Letters. 

Anti-shark paranoia was settling over Western Australia, and the state government had issued a controversial kill order. Scientists said the cull’s safety benefits were unproven and could potentially hurt recovering populations of white sharks. Worse, they claimed at least one shark marked for death was located only because it had been acoustically tagged by researchers.

The policy was eventually abandoned, but it highlighted an important point: Fitting animals with transmitters so scientists can track their every movement may also leave them vulnerable. Technology that’s ostensibly there to help these species thrive can actually be used against them. Read more…

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