COMPUTER HACKING

By: Unknown on 11:42 PM

COMPUTER_HACKING HACKING HISTORY TYPES OF HACKERS BASICS_OF_HACKING HOW TO BECOME HACKER HACKERS' ATTITUDE HACKERS & CRACKERS PREVENTING HACKING HACKING CULTURE
COMPUTER HACKING Computer hacking is the practice of modifying computer hardware and software to  accomplish a goal outside of the creator’s original purpose. People who engage in  computer hacking activities are often called hackers. Since the word “hack” has long  been used to describe someone who is incompetent at his/her profession, some hackers  claim this term is offensive and fails to give appropriate recognition to their skills. Hacking is most common among teenagers and young people, although there are many  older hackers too. Many hackers are true technology buffs who enjoy learning more about  how computers work and consider computer hacking as an form. They often enjoy  programming and have expert-level skills in one particular program. For these individuals,  computer hacking is a real life application of their problem-solving skills. It’s a chance to  demonstrate their abilities, not an opportunity to harm others. Since a large number of hackers are self-taught prodigies, but there are some  organizations who actually employ computer hackers as part of their technical support  staff. These individuals use their skills to find flaws in the company’s security system  so that they can be repaired quickly. In many cases, this type of computer hacking  helps prevent identity theft and other serious computer-related crimes. GO TOP HACKING HISTORY Computer hackers have existed almost as long as computers. In fact, "hackers" have been  in existence for more than a century. In 1878, just two years after the telephone was  invented by Alexander Graham Bell, a group of teenage boys hired to run the  switchboards were kicked off a telephone system in New York. The reason? The BOYS  were more interested in knowing how the phone system worked than IN making  proper connections and directing calls to the correct place. In essence, they were trying to  "hack" the system to see  how it worked. Originally, "hacker" did not carry the negative connotations now associated with the term.  In the late 1950s and early 1960s, computers were much different. A Brief History One might not suspect that the art, computer hacking was created at one of the  havens for technological excellence. students developed the technique and borrowed  their name from the "hackers" of the late 1800s who found amusement in pranking the  emerging telephone companies. Getting their laughs and skills from hacking and  cracking into primitive computers and exploiting the Arpanet (predecessor to the  internet), they created a novelty that would become the target of federal crackdown in years  to come. To define hacking in short, we can say that an artistic criminal offense of  breaking into another remote system without the owner's consent for the purpose of  stealing information is what is hacking. GO TOP However, the act of hacking started out innocently, and was basically a method of trying  to figure out how computer systems worked. The 1970s saw the rise in "phreaking," or   phone hacking, headed by John Draper. This method allowed the user of a "blue box, ", when used with a Captain Crunch whistle of 2600 hertz which accessed the AT&T long  distance system, to make free long distance calls. Hackers initiated with accessing the free  phone calls through a varied range of sources, thereby managing to circumvent into the  nation's radio system and the phoning system resulting in a tremendous phone fraud  nationwide. After the age of "phreaking," computers became not only the target, but also the forum,  for a growing hacker population to communicate. The creation of bulletin board systems  (BBS) allowed this communication and the technological possibility of more serious  government and credit card hacking became possible. At this time in the early 80's,  hacking groups such as the Legion of Doom began to emerge in the United States,  giving organization, and thus more power to hackers across the country. Once this happened, breaking into the computers became a legitimate activity, with its  own groups and soon its own voice with the 2600 magazine, launched in 1984.  The effects of computer hacking were serious. Two years later, inevitably, Congress  launched the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act that outlawed hacking. Over the years,  there was a series of noticeable occurrences as the worst consequential effect of  computer hacking on more high profile cases, such as the Morris Worm, responsible for  infecting government and university systems, and the Mitnick case in 1995, which  captured Kevin Mitnick, steeling as many as 20000 credit card numbers.  In 1999, security software became widely known by the public, and with the  release of new Windows programs, which were littered with security weaknesses,  they became successful because of necessity. This fraudulent act of computer hacking  is perhaps the major problem, confronting the rapidly expanding population of Internet  users today, with the systems still trying to battle online hackers.  GO TOP TYPES OF HACKERS There are basically two types of hackers: - 1.  BLACK HAT HACKER They are also called "crackers", are hackers who specialize in unauthorized  penetration. They may use computers to attack systems for profit, for fun, or for  political motivations or as a part of a social cause. Such penetration often involves  modification and/or destruction of data, and is done without authorization and hence  they should not be confused with ethical hackers. They also may distribute computer viruses, Internet worms, and deliver spam   through the use of botnets. The term may also refer to hackers who crack software   to remove protection methods: copy prevention, trial/demo version, serial number,  hardware key, date checks, CD check (NO-CD) or software annoyances like nag  screens and adware. 2.  WHITE HAT HACKER White hat hackers, also known as "ethical hackers," are computer security  experts, who specialize inpenetration testing, and other testing methodologies,  to ensure that a company's information systems are secure. Such people are  employed by companies where these professionals are sometimes called  "sneakers." Groups of these people are often called tiger teams or red teams.  These security experts may utilize a variety of methods to carry out their  tests, including social engineering tactics, use of hacking tools, and attempts to  evade security to gain entry into secured areas. The National Security Agency offers certifications such as the CNSS 4011. Such  a certification covers orderly, ethical hacking techniques and team management.  Aggressor teams are called "red" teams. Defender teams are called "blue" teams. GO TOP BASICS OF HACKING Certainly you have many sources of information available that can give computer  hacking basics. There is actually some misconception about who a real hacker is.  Hacking computers is performed by one who knows computers very well - even the extra  tricks of a computer and electronics.  Any one can easily tweek these according to his  needs and become hacker. This is the way the term used when Bill Gates was inventing  Windows. Those who are often referred to as hackers today, should actually be called "crackers"  - people who do not have unauthorized access, like a safe-cracker. If you doubt me, and  want to know how to be a hacker then do a search on the term "professional hacker," and  you will find many professional and legitimate computer training courses being offered.  They are the ones learning the real hacker secrets. GO TOP HOW TO BECOME HACKER Everyone has heard of one individual or another that was caught while hacking computers  that belonged to this or that organization. Because hacking into computers is highly  illegal and punishable, it should be mentioned that this article will not mention any  real specifics about the subject, and we would rather gladly encourage you to  become a real hacker - professionally. This para, will however, give a brief overview of criminal hackers, some of their  methods, and a few things you can do to make your own computer safer from  hack attacks. Here are those things you need to learn on how to become a hacker. STEPS TO BE A HACKER ADOPT THE MINDSET OF A HACKERHackers solve problems and build  things, and they believe in freedom and voluntary mutual help. To be accepted  as a hacker, you have to behave as though you have this kind of attitude yourself.  And to behave as though you have the attitude, you have to really believe the attitude.  So, if you want to be a hacker, repeat the following things until you believe them: The world is full of fascinating problems waiting to be solved.  Successful athletes get their motivation from a kind of physical delight  in making their bodies perform, in pushing themselves past their own  physical limits. Similarly, you have to get a basic thrill from solving  problems, sharpening your skills, and exercising your intelligence. No problem should ever have to be solved twice. The thinking time of  other hackers is precious - so much so that it's almost a moral duty for  you to share information, solve problems and then give the solutions away  just so other hackers can solve new problems instead of having to perpetually  re-address old ones. Boredom and drudgery are evil. When hackers are bored or have to  drudge at stupid repetitive work, they aren't doing what only they can do  - solve new problems. To behave like a hacker, you have to want to automate  away the boring bits as much as possible. Freedom is good. The authoritarian attitude has to be fought wherever you  find it, lest it smother you and other hackers. Not all authority figures are  authoritarian, however; authoritarians thrive on censorship and secrecy.  And they distrust voluntary cooperation and information-sharing. Attitude is no substitute for competence. Hackers won't let posers waste  their time, but they worship competence - especially competence at  hacking, but competence at anything is valued. Competence at  demanding skills that few can master is especially good, and competence  at demanding skills that involve mental acuteness, craft, and concentration is best. LEARN HOW TO PROGRAM The best way to learn is to read some stuff written by masters of the form,  write some things yourself, read a lot more, write a little more, read a lot more,  write some more, and repeat until your writing begins to develop the kind of  strength and economy you see in your models. To be a real hacker, however,  you need to get to the point where you can learn a new language in days by  relating what's in the manual to what you already know. This means you  should learn several very different languages. Besides being the most important  hacking languages, the following represent very different approaches to  programming, and each will educate you in valuable ways. Python is a good language to start off with because it's cleanly designed,  well documented, and relatively kind to beginners. Despite being a good first  language, it is not just a toy; it is very powerful and flexible and  well suited for large projects. Java is an alternative, but its value as a first  programming language has been questioned. If you get into serious programming, you will have to learn , the core  language of Unix (C++ is very closely related to C; if you know one,  learning the other will not be difficult). C is very efficient with your  machine's resources, but will soak up huge amounts of your time  on debugging and is often avoided for that reason  (unless machine efficiency is essential). Perl is worth learning for practical reasons; it's very widely used for  active web pages and system administration, so that even if you never  write Perl you should learn to read it. Many people use Perl to avoid  C programming on jobs that don't require C's machine efficiency. LISP is worth learning for a different reason - the profound enlightenment  experience you will have when you finally get it. That experience  will make you a better programmer for the rest of your days, even if you  never actually use LISP itself a lot. You can get some beginning experience  with LISP fairly easily by writing and modifying editing modes for the  Emacs text editor, or Script-Fu plugins for the GIMP. GO TOP GET ONE OF THE OPEN SOURCE Get one of the open-source Unixes and learn to use and run it. Unix is the  operating system of the Internet. While you can learn to use the Internet  without knowing Unix, you can't be an Internet hacker without understanding  Unix. For this reason, the hacker culture today is pretty strongly Unix-centered.  So, bring up a Unix (like Linux but there are other ways and yes, you can run both  Linux and Microsoft Windows on the same machine). Learn it. Run it. Tinker with it.  Talk to the Internet with it. Read the code. Modify the code. There are other operating systems in the world besides Unix. But they're  distributed in binary - you can't read the code, and you can't modify it.  Trying to learn to hack on a Microsoft Windows machine or under any  other closed-source system is like trying to learn to dance while wearing  a body cast. Under Mac OS X it's possible, but only part of the system is  open source, you're likely to hit a lot of walls, and you have to be careful  not to develop the bad habit of depending on Apple's proprietary code. Download Linux online or (better idea) find a local Linux user group to help  you with installation. While other distros have their own areas of strength, Ubuntu is far  and away the most accessible to Linux newbies. A good way to dip your toes in the water is to boot up what Linux  fans call a live CD, a distribution that runs entirely off a CD without  having to modify your hard disk. This will be slow, because CDs are  slow, but it's a way to get a look at the possibilities without having to do  anything drastic. GO TOP LEARN HOW TO USE THE WORLD WIDE WEB AND WRITE  WRITE HTML Most of the things the hacker culture has built do their  work out of sight, helping run factories and offices and universities without  any obvious impact on how non-hackers live. The Web is the one big exception,  the huge shiny hacker toy that even politicians admit has changed the world.  For this reason alone (and a lot of other good ones as well) you need to learn how  to work the Web. This doesn't just mean learning how to drive a browser  (anyone can do that), but learning how to write HTML, the Web's markup  language. If you don't know how to program, writing HTML will teach you  some mental habits that will help you learn. So build a home page. Try to  stick to XHTML, which is a cleaner language than classic HTML. IF YOU DON'T HAVE FUNCTIONAL ENGLISH, LEARN IT:  English  is the working language of the hacker culture and the Internet, and you will  need to know it to function in the hacker community. Translations of technical  books written in English are often unsatisfactory (when they get done at all).  Being a native English-speaker does not guarantee that you have language  skills good enough to function as a hacker. If your writing is semi-literate,  ungrammatical, and riddled with misspellings, many hackers will tend to  ignore you. While sloppy writing does not invariably mean sloppy thinking,  the correlation is strong. If you can't yet write competently, learn to. EARN RESPECT AS A HACKER : Like most cultures without a money  economy, hackerdom runs on reputation. You're trying to solve interesting  problems, but how interesting they are, and whether your solutions are  really good, is something that only your technical peers or superiors are  normally equipped to judge. This is why you aren't really a hacker until  other hackers consistently call you one. Specifically, hackerdom is what  anthropologists call a gift culture. You gain status and reputation in it not by  dominating other people, nor by being beautiful, nor by having things other  people want, but rather by giving things away: your time, your creativity, and  the results of your skill. Write open-source software. Write programs that other hackers think are  fun or useful, and give the program sources away to the whole hacker  culture to use. Hackerdom's most revered demigods are people who  have written large, capable programs that met a widespread need and  given them away, so that now everyone uses them. Help test and debug open-source software. Any open-source author who's  thinking will tell you that good beta-testers (who know how to describe  symptoms clearly, localize problems well, can tolerate bugs in a quickie  release, and are willing to apply a few simple diagnostic routines) are  worth their weight in rubies. Try to find a program under development  that you're interested in and be a good beta-tester. There's a natural  progression from helping test programs to helping debug them to helping  modify them. You'll learn a lot this way, and generate good karma with  people who will help you later on. Publish useful information. Another good thing is to collect and  filter useful and interesting information into web pages or documents  like Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) lists, and make those generally  available. Maintainers of major technical FAQs get almost as much respect  as open-source authors. Help keep the infrastructure working. The hacker culture  (and the engineering development of the Internet, for that matter) is run  by volunteers. There's a lot of necessary but unglamorous work that  needs done to keep it going - administering mailing lists, moderating  newsgroups, maintaining large software archive sites, developing  RFCs and other technical standards. People who do this sort of thing  well get a lot of respect, because everybody knows these jobs are huge  time sinks and not as much fun as playing with code. Doing them shows  dedication. Serve the hacker culture itself. This is not something you'll be positioned  to do until you've been around for while and become well-known for one  of the four previous items. The hacker culture doesn't have leaders,  exactly, but it does have culture heroes and tribal elders and historians  and spokespeople. When you've been in the trenches long enough, you  may grow into one of these. Beware: hackers distrust blatant ego  in their tribal elders, so visiblyreac hing for this kind of fame is dangerous. Rather than striving for it,  you have to sort of position yourself so it drops in your lap, and then be  modest and gracious about your status.  GO TOP HACKERS ATTITUDE Hackers solve problems and build things, and they believe in freedom and  voluntary mutual help. To be accepted as a hacker, you have to behave as though  you have this kind of attitude yourself. And to behave as though you have  the attitude, you have to really believe the attitude. But if you think of cultivating hacker attitudes as just a way to gain acceptance in  the culture, you'll miss the point. Becoming the kind of person who believes these  things is important for you - for helping you learn and keeping you motivated.  As with all creative arts, the most effective way to become a master is to imitate  the mind-set of masters,  not just intellectually but emotionally as well. GO TOP HACKERS & CRACKERS In order to study the comparison the between the hackers and crackers, it is  important to understand the respective definitions. While apparently the words  hacking and cracking seems synonymous, yet there exist certain points of distinctions  between the two and the meaning of the words will always be heated topics of debate.  unattainable have went on opening new horizons in almost every aspects of life, and  the technology is of no exception to this nature of human AIMS OF HACKERS AND CRACKERS The computer hackers actually trespass or circumvent artistically, yet scientifically  into the other computer system with a hunger to know the programmable systems, how  they perform and their internal structures, while cracking is slight different in sense.  Cracking means to break off the computer's security system. This is a subject matter of  hard-core science with an aesthetic undertone of artistic skill that has attracted a few  millions of teenagers and young adults all over the world. WHO IS A HACKER AND WHAT IS HIS AIM Delving deep into the concepts, we can compare the hackers and crackers. A hacker  is a person who commits the fraudulent act or the penal offense of exploring into the  other computers in order to know the details of the programmable system and how  they work. On the other level, a cracker is a person just more secretive as compared to  the hacker. The cracker breaks through the system's security and proves to be far  more dangerous than the hackers who just quench his or her thirst by simply discovering the workings of a system.  Hence the crackers can potentially be much more perilous as compared to the  hackers. While it is often believed that the hacking is simply exploring into the other  computer system with an intention to know how the programmable system works,  which is not a fraudulent task unless any sort of vandalism and theft is done by  this, another huge section stands strictly against the view and look at the act from the  view point of a crime. WHO IS A CRACKER AND WHAT IS HIS AIM? A cracker is a technical person who has mastered the art of breaking systems,  often not for acquiring knowledge, by the dint of few programs and softwares  used as tools. They are more interested in the system's security without the need  of great deal of knowledge, thereby not benefiting much.  On the other hand, a hacker who cracks and hacks systems is not only interested in  breaking the security of the system but also in knowing about the system's details , by which he gains much more than by simply cracking systems. Unlike a cracker,  a hacker generally does not have intention destroy data maliciously or to steel things.  A cracker who is often termed to be a cyber burglar brings out significant harm  to the network or steels the information like passwords or credit card numbers. A  Trojan is capable enough to recognize and record even every single keystroke  that you make. Hence even if you do not store any personal or financial records  in your system, the hackers can still be able to obtain the information by recognizing  the keystrokes. GO TOP PREVENTING HACKING HACKER TRICKS AND PREVENTION TECHNIQUES In movies or TV series where hackers are involved, we may have seen them apply  their computer knowledge in order to perform certain hacker tricks that saved the  day. Swordfish", hackers have been able to elevate themselves to the level of heroes  with only a keyboar d and a mouse. However, hackers attacks and hacker prevention is more difficulty,  and complex, in real life.  Hollywood has a tendency to oversimplify things so the general public can  understand them. After all, only a small percentage of the population has enough  skills to perform this kind of demonstrations. So, if you want to prevent hacking  there are some basics that need to be learned first. TRICKS AND TECHNIQUES USED BY HACKERS TO ATTACK The first most common technique used technique used by hackers is scanning.  Hackers have created tools that scan computers for weak spots. It can be an  operating system that hasn't been upgraded or a port in the computer that it  is open without the knowledge of the user. Hackers use this "open window" to get inside your computer in order to do  whatever they want to do. The interesting thing about this is that these hacker tools  are available for free in the Internet. So, with a couple of hours of instructions, almost  every computer user can become a hacker.  Another way that hackers can access your machine is through malware: programs  designed to capture vital information from your computer, like login users and  passwords. Malware could be hidden in a PowerPoint presentation sent by email or  even in an innocent Instant Messenger message window. HOW TO PREVENT HACKER ATTACKS Hackers are always looking for a way to get into computers of other persons.  It can be something as simple as phising confidential information  (like credit card or bank account numbers) to complex hacking routines that  use your computer as a repository for illegal content (like music or movies with copyright). Unfortunately there is no magical software to prevent hackers; and it will  never exist. It doesn't matter how much money or resources you invest in  designing the perfect system, someone will find the way to crack it. Even the biggest  government agencies like NASA, CIA and NSA have been victims of hackers.  And the same thing happens in the private sector with companies like Citigroup  or Wal-Mart. EFFECTIVE WAYS TO STOP HACKERS So, what can you do to protect your tiny machine from hacker tricks? Fortunately,  there are some measures that we can take, and it doesn't require us to be a Neo or  Hugh Jackman's character from the movie "Swordfish". These hacker protection tips  are simple and effective and will defined you from most of the attacks OS UPDATES The first thing to do in computer hacking prevention is to assure yourself that all your  software is up to date; especially your operating system and your web browser. Why?  Because they are the two things that hackers will try to attack first if they want to get  into your computer.  FIREWALL The second thing that you need to do is to install a firewall. As a matter of fact  internet firewall hacker protection has become so necessary that Microsoft now ships  it for free as part of their Windows XP operating system. It took them some years to  admit it, but the truth is that their software was an easy target for the hackers and  crackers that lurked through the World Wide Web. In case you don't want to use Windows XP firewall, there are many alternatives in  the market. Companies like Symantec and Zone Labs have produced software  firewalls for some time and have become a necessity for all the computers of  corporate America. If you don't know which one you want to buy, use the trial periods.  Usually you can use the firewall for 15 to 30 days; that amount of time is more  than enough to make your decision. The next step in security is to have an antivirus  installed. There are free versions like AVG antivirus, or pay per year licenses,  like Norton Antivirus (also from Symantec). As in the case of firewalls,  there are many varieties available in the market; use the trial periods for choosing wisely.  ANTI SPYWARE/ADWARE Finally, there is the anti-spyware program. As if viruses were not enough, companies  from around the world decided to create programs that could pick up data from  your computer in order to acquire information for their databases. It may not be  as dangerous as a virus, but it is an intrusion to your privacy. Wipe them out with  this piece of software. Nowadays hacker prevention has become a task for all of us. No longer is it the  responsibility of the system administrator of our company. After all, he can install  all the security of the world in the company's network, but if you let a virus in because  of your carelessness, he won't be able to stop it. The same goes for your computer at  home. You are the only one responsible for it. Remember that new hacker tricks  appear as each day goes by, so you need to be prepared. GO TOP HACKING CULTURE Hacker culture is composed by all those experiences and human manifestations  that are related to the exploit of hardware and software. Right now there are  three kinds of hackers. The first and most known kind of hacker is the black  hat hacker, or the individual who uses his knowledge for obtaining a  personal benefit. Usually, it means stealing information that can be sold in the  black market. The most daring black hat hackers are able to crack bank accounts, leaving no  trace behind. Fortunately, bank security and worldwide cooperation has been  able to place some restrictions and control over these individuals. On the other side of the balance is the white hack hacker, a computer  security expert who works with organizations and helps them with their computer  network security problems. Finally, there are the grey hat hackers. This kind of hackers is composed by  people who walk the thin line between white hat hackers and black hat hackers.  Usually, their tendency will be influenced by their need of money or their  lust for recognition among the hacker community. GO TOP

@ Copyright 2012 Pradeep Lodhi (ethical hacker)