Most Teen Computer Hackers More Curious Than Criminal

HelloWorld · #1 (**permalink**) 08-23-2007, 12:24 AM

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Most Teen Computer Hackers More Curious Than Criminal
USA Today (08/20/07) P. 5D; Elias, Marilyn

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Teenagers mostly commit cyber crimes due to curiosity and not criminal motivation, said University of San Francisco psychologist Shirley McGuire at the American Psychological Association conference. A survey of about 4,800 San Diego-area high school students revealed that 38 percent copied software illegally, while 18 percent accessed someone's computer or Web site without permission. However, only about one in 10 students said their intentions were for causing trouble or making money, while several cited the excitement and challenge as their motivation. Additionally, boys were more likely than girls to participate in hacking and make unauthorized software copies. "In the vast majority of instances, it's not a crime because it's not done with criminal intent," says University of Illinois in Chicago researcher Steve Jones. He adds that parents should play a more active role in educating teens about the peril of copyright issues online and that they should also trust their children. Nancy Willard of the Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use says most kids hack "just to see if they can do it" and that schools should implement programs pairing students with industry professionals that foster and promote positive PC activities.

What do you guys think? LOL, I was doing a lot in security when I was in high school, but I'm addicted more with coding and algorithm lol... Anyways, I remembered that I read one article that's written by Computer Security guy, which was a "Hacker" (check out the quotation mark)... She said that Computer Criminals != Hackers and I think it's really important to know that because many people do misused the term of "Hacker"

Source: ACM TechNews
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Bench · #2 (**permalink**) 08-23-2007, 03:19 AM

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Originally Posted by HelloWorld

[b]
What do you guys think? LOL, I was doing a lot in security when I was in high school, but I'm addicted more with coding and algorithm lol... Anyways, I remembered that I read one article that's written by Computer Security guy, which was a "Hacker" (check out the quotation mark)... She said that Computer Criminals != Hackers and I think it's really important to know that because many people do misused the term of "Hacker"

I don't think the attitude/curiousity anything very new - i mean, tell a teenager not to jump off a cliff...

as for the "hacker" thing - the common definition of the word is different now to 20-odd years ago, when 'hacker' was originally contrived to mean 'programmer'. Various individuals and groups of people who wore the tag 'hacker' caused some high-profile security breaches over the years
- This public attention combined with various TV programs/Movies has caused the meaning of 'hacker' to evolve, so the modern definition of the word generally refers to someone who breaks into computers or cracks software security.

I think some people who had previously worn their 'hacker' tag with pride in the 70s/80s still spit chunks whenever "their word" is used in a derogatory way to mean something criminal, so sometimes you come across explosive rants by 'hackers' who vehemently believe that the word should be exclusively reserved for talented programmers.

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