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- What Is a Hacker?
- Who Are the Hackers?
- What Damage Can Hackers Do?
- Targets of a Hack Attack
- Hacker Motivation: I Think Therefore I Hack
- Tools of the Trade: Pass Me a Trojan Horse, Would You?
- Firewall: Shut Out the Hackers
- Software Firewalls: Programs That Stop Hackers
- How to Detect a Hacker Attack
- How to Fix a Hacker Attack
- Batten down the Hatches—10-Minute Tactics
- Wall off the World—Install a Better Firewall in an Afternoon
- The Absolute Minimum
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
What Damage Can Hackers Do?
Hackers like to subvert computer security without permission. They are cyber criminals. This can mean gaining access to a computer across the Internet for illicit purposes. They might engage in any of the following activities:
- Vandalism—Destruction or digital defacement of a computer or its data for destruction’s sake. Sometimes this is ego-driven. They break in and leave their mark to show they’ve been there.
- Hacktivism—A form of vandalism or electronic civil disobedience with a political agenda. Usually hacktivists have altruistic motives.
- Theft—Gaining access to intellectual or proprietary technology or information, sometimes for resale.
- Hijacking—Many of the financially motivated hackers are interested in using viruses and Trojan horses to hijack your computer so they can remotely control it for their own purposes.
- Identity theft—Electronic theft of personal information that can be used to steal financial resources from an individual or corporation.
- Terrorism—Some experts believe that terrorists will eventually launch an attack using hacking techniques.