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Objective To develop a defense-oriented ethical framework that distinguishes lawful cybersecurity practices from malicious cyber intrusions and provides a governance model for ethical hacking within the United States national security context. Methods A narrative review methodology was employed to synthesize interdisciplinary literature on cybersecurity, cyber law, computer ethics, penetration testing, hacktivism, state-sponsored cyber operations, and responsible vulnerability disclosure. The review integrated legal, ethical, and policy perspectives with illustrative case studies, including Microsoft’s responsible vulnerability disclosure model and the Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack, to evaluate the conditions under which hacking may be ethically and legally justified. Results The review identified five essential criteria for ethically defensible cyber operations: legitimate authority, defensive necessity, non-malicious intent, proportionality, and accountable disclosure. Building on these principles, the study proposes the Defense Ethical Cyber Operations (DECO) Framework, comprising Defensive Necessity, Ethical Constraint, Command Accountability, and Operational Transparency. The framework distinguishes authorized defensive cyber activities from cybercrime, hacktivism, and politically motivated intrusion. The analysis further supports legal reforms promoting responsible vulnerability disclosure, bug bounty programs, safe-harbor protections, clear authorization boundaries, and rapid reporting mechanisms for critical infrastructure vulnerabilities while maintaining stringent penalties for extortion, sabotage, espionage, and data theft. Conclusion Ethical hacking, when conducted under legitimate authority and robust legal oversight, represents a strategic component of national cyber defense rather than a threat to security. The proposed DECO Framework offers a practical policy model for strengthening cyber resilience, promoting accountable security research, and supporting democratic governance of cyberspace Graphical abstract: This figure illustrates ethical hacking as a regulated defensive cyber strategy guided by authority, necessity, proportionality, disclosure, and accountability.