Group 16 Task 2; Hacking

Group 16
Harish Kumar Lingannapeta
Sirish Sreekanth

"Hacking” refers to the hobby/profession of working with computers and breaking into computer systems such as defrauding banks, stealing credit cards, breaking into public and private databases to steal, modify or corrupt data and spreading viruses. These activities are widespread prior to the application via computer system.

The term Hacker has a double meaning within the field of computing. A hacker can be an expert computer programmer who creates complex software and hardware, a hacker is someone who gains unauthorized access to a computer system. Many hackers just like the challenge of breaking through a computer security system but not all hackers are harmless. It must also be said that not all hackers are bad. Government and huge companies use hackers to maintain their security systems. People normally confuse hackers with crackers. While hackers crack the code of passwords to hack into a security system, crackers crack the code of software to bypass its security mechanisms like copyright protection etc.

Hacking and cracking are two different methods, but hackers normally possess cracking skills and crackers, hackings skills. Also note that not all hackers are humans. You also get computerized hackers, but they are developed by humans of course. in our study related to hacking and hackers one of the reports states that Mississippi State University computer science student's research led to a FBI investigation that uncovered a computer hacker planning to jeopardize health and safety of patients at a Dallas, Texas, medical clinic.

Online bragging by the hacker mentioned control and escape computer systems responsible for critical infrastructure that could jeopardize lives, if compromised. The hacker bragged about breaking into the facility’s heating ventilation and air condition computer system with plans for a serious attack that could harm patients at the clinic, along with affecting medications kept at specific temperatures.

The Hacker Ethic was a new way of life, with a philosophy, an ethic and a dream. However, the elements of the Hacker Ethic were not openly debated and discussed rather they were accepted and silently agreed upon.

Hacktivism -is a policy of hacking, phreaking or creating technology to achieve a political or social goal.
Phracker - a person who combines phone phreaking with computer hacking.
On the whole hacking is not a good practice and if given a chance everybody want to be an hacker.