Hackers Not Slackers
Since the introduction of personal computers in the 1970's, the art of computer hacking has grown along with changing roles of computers in society. Computers have taken over our lives. People could not function without them; our electricity is run by computers, the government could not function without computers, and there are many others. Hackers are people who illegally gain access to, and sometimes tamper with, information in a computer system. Due to recent media coverage and corporate interest, hackers activities are now looked down on by society as criminal. Despite the growing trend of hacking, very little research has been done on the hacking world and its culture. The image of a computer hacker has grown from a harmless nerd into a vicious techno-criminal. In reality most hackers are not out to destroy the world. The hackers in today's society are not bored teenagers. In "Hackers intensify fears of industrial espionage," Mark Gembicki reports "the typical hacker used to be 14 to 16 years of age, white male, somewhat of an introvert . . . However, this is no longer the case. . . Our hacker profile . . . [is that] the hackers are around 30-33, white male again, professional" (Drumhelle
Genuine hackers hack only for the joy of knowledge. A rush, like no other, is felt after finally gaining access into a site or a computer. They feel most information should be free. They do not look at hacking as stealing. They see hacking as borrowing information. However the good hackers do understand the rights of privacy and the good hackers do not mess with peoples private matters. Hackers believe knowledge is power. Therefor they are in the constant pursuit of power. Drumheller, Michelle. "Hackers Intensify Fears of Industrial Espionage." National Defense 84.549 (1999) : 48-52. Hacking is considered illegal everywhere in the world. Many governments are posed with the threat of national security being broken into by the bad hackers. The bad hackers can be dangerous, they may gain access to classified information. Patricia Irving, president of a small business which creates biological and chemical defense technology, says "'Our technologies are being used for national security type purposes, and the U.S. government has a concern about what might be happening' in countries that might not be friendly toward the United States or with terrorist groups inside and outside of this country" (qtd. in D
Some common words found in the essay are:
Patricia Irving, Brendan Koerner, Hackers Slackers, Mark Gembicki, World Report, National Defense, Koerner Brendan, growing trend, bad hackers, York Dell, national security, fears industrial espionage, intensify fears industrial, hackers, hackers intensify, intensify fears, fears industrial, industrial espionage, hackers intensify fears, gain access, world report,
Approximate Word count = 822
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
|
