Questions about the scope of the FBI 's snooping led to the world 's biggest tech scandal . Hacking of major companies and sites for politics , fun and profit a reoccurring story in 2012 . Another big story this year was cybersecurity , illustrated by a string of attacks by hackers against news organizations , major tech companies and retailers . Google , Vine , Bitcoin and iOS 7 all became familiar faces .
Questions about the scope of the FBI 's snooping led to the world 's biggest tech scandal . Hacking of major companies and sites for politics , fun and profit a reoccurring story in 2012 . Google , Vine , Bitcoin and iOS 7 all became familiar faces .