Hacker

of these articles treats the term „hackers “as person designation within the range of the technology. For further meanings, see hacker (term clarifying).

After general understanding a hacker is an extremely talentierter computer specialist, who can overcome and in stranger of systems penetrate in particular safety barriers. Parallel to it numerous further definitions for this term, which do not find within different, also information-technical ranges, use, exist. So hacker can be general also a name for humans with unusually good abilities in his field of activity, or for an improvisation talent. Particularly in the programming scene the term in this form is used, whereby there also gladly developers are called of free software, which reveals their source code, overall as hackers, which represents an expression of the respect for their ethical attitude in relation to the society. The term can stand also for persons, who use and in a way use a technology of arbitrary kind creatively, which the developers of the technology did not plan.

Regardless of its term finds „to hacker “in the media usually in the context of a destructive computer expert application, which uses his talents primarily for criminal purposes. Derived from this use, the term is brought colloquially fast with criminal subjects in connection, which bad in the sign and cause to the society damage want to lead.

In the hacker culture further classifications, as for example to Hacktivist than name for someone, exist which uses its abilities for political purposes. Destructive hackers are called there devaluing Crasher or Cracker, whereby the term is to be distinguished „Softwarecracker “from it again and no synonym for a destructive hacker represents.

Additionally distinctive with respect to the professional world clearly between a hacker (thus its being able distinguishes) and a Skriptkiddie unaquainted in the thing, who only prefabricated harming programs (English. times commodity) or comparable guidances uses, however no own abilities brings in. The existence of Skriptkiddies led too strongly increased spreading of harming routines. Beyond the professional world the term „of the Skriptkiddies is hardly common “and these with hackers is often equated and/or. excluding the resulting damage perception.

Table of contents

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term change

the word „chop “had in the course of history many meanings. Begun of the sauntering ride, something rent or into small pieces strike (14. Century), a writer or a someone, who performs routine work (18. Century), a name for a dry cough and/or. for Räuspern, in order to make attentive or also around a word, whose discussion one does not know exactly, whitewash on itself (19. Century), attained the term into the late 1950er years directly several new meanings.

Thus Harley-Davidson used - drivers in south California „hacking “as synonym for dividing their motorcycles and not least for the Tunen of their makes, in order to make it lower, faster and more beautiful than the originals.

At the same time the term „chop “used by the model railway club of the WITH (the Massachusetts Institute of Technology), more exactly the TMRC (Tech Model Railroad club OF WITH). It stood here for particularly elegant and creative ideas and solution methods of any kind. If a student of the WITH a refined caper go out-hit a corner, the evil author was considered as „a hacker “, without absolutely referring thereby to the computer.

In contrast to this the Computerfreaks of the WITH called AI lab (Artificial Intelligence Laboratory), which the first large computers of the WITH programmed, also common programming and the free exchange of knowledge „chopped themselves “and „hackers “. Already in these first years they wrote a Kodex, which was not however at that time yet completely so seriously taken for itself, as it was later the case: the hacker ethics.

When members of the model course club began to work with a DEC-PDP-1-Computer their Slang was transferred now also in written form to the computer. Those first well-known use of the term „hackers “became in this way of the expenditure of the student paper of 20. November 1963 of the polytechnical institute of the WITH registers.

End of the 1960er stood the term „for hacker “already world-wide as synonym for someone, which is occupied intensively with the computer.

1972 opened John T. Draper, also admits the era of free telephoning, the so-called Phreaking as „Captain Crunch “, by its publication of a clay/tone choice signal. This was more remarkably chops, which represents the first salient association between the term „to heels “and overcoming safety barriers.

Regardless of its term was coined/shaped „hackers “into the 1970ern to beginning of the 1980er years as name for an unusually good programmer. Derived from it the word resembles rank within the programmer and hacker scene also today still another: It witnesses from respect and represents an honor for unusually good abilities, which is not considered lent of members of the scene as rashly.

In contrast to this also skurrile, usually on the fast provided Notlösungen „chop “called, which function, but are by far not perfect. Regarding a developer, whose source code represents only one lining up of such Hacks, the word hacker stands for a schlampigen programmer and represents in this context no honour.

the media Newsweek and CBS news publicised 1983 for the first time the term „hackers “in connection with criminal computer specialists.

Hacker stood for center of the 1980er primarily for point-avid humans, who investigated, into the depths of the subject penetrated the world of the computers and thereby in stranger of systems chop itself could. Due to the fascination of the latter ability, it was strongly exaggerated represented particularly toward end of the 1980er by film and press. A quite limited definition of the term reached so the heads of the population and let the myth hacker, as it is languagecommon used today, develop. The 1988 published contribution Stalking the Wily hacker of Clifford Stoll from the expenditure for May of the Communications OF the ACM as well as its relevant work The Cuckoo's Egg from the year 1989 and not least the reactions of the press to at this time the circulating Morris worm and KGB chopping did their remaining, in order to coin/shape this one-sided picture lastingly.

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the modern use of the term hacker

“to work against 2003 suggested of Eric Steven Raymond as international symbol of the hacker culture over

the bad reputation of a hacker some Insider try to establish „the hacker emblem since 1990 a strict separation between hackers and Crackern. Cracker and Crasher are according to their definition thus no hackers. The reduction of the hacker definition on a group of property goods is however very disputed. Not least the fact that a partitioning can be in „well “and „badly “if necessary vague and subjective, in addition, the view that such a restriction is too dogmatisch, prevent so far a surface covering acceptance of this definition.

Parallel to it also the view exists since beginning of the 1990er that the present maxim of the hacker consists of writing programs whose source code for the public is openly accessible. Therefore each open SOURCE would be - a programmer a hacker. Others mean that beside open SOURCE the ideological emphasis of a hacker in the development from free software is to be found to. Is also here no speech of safety barriers and technology.

View of functioning technology means heels for many Insider above all also knowledge and. Thus the CCC (chaos computer club) under heels understands creative handling technology of any kind. Herwart Holland Moritz (alias Wau Holland) was one of the large guidance figures of the hacker scene at that time and coined/shaped the utterance: If one uses the coffee machine, because the stove does not go to prepare in order to make for water hot, which is used for it, the finished mixture for mashed potatoes then one is a hacker.

The technological beginning of a definition is used Autotunern and PC-Tweakern, which likewise hacker calls itself also by some hardware designers, Case Moddern.

The term „chop “stands also for the extension provided by complex programs or for a code, the entrance to equipment and/or. a new function promises, which was not intended in this form by the manufacturer. Also a change of the hardware falls under it (e.g. Playstation chopping). Thus the term of the Reverse engineering is likewise added to the hacker sphere. Here mostly the trace between the terms like so often smears itself „hackers “and „Softwarecracker “.

Often Insider understand by one chop also astonishing a simple, elegant and pfiffige solution of a nontrivial problem. When particularly skillful hacker, who turns on the things with simple means, designated in this connection someone, which can manufacture furniture sense-figurativy only with an axe as tool.

Equivalent one for the medium-coined/shaped, colloquial understanding of the term „hackers “gives it also numerous Insider, which see the true challenge of a hacker therein, to outwit and thus weak points to recognize be able safety mechanisms.

Humans, who were involved considerably to develop Internet or who contribute up-to-date to extend the use of the Internets crucially under most Insidern just as by agreement as hackers are designated, as the developers of the most important milestones regarding science, technology and software.

In the reference to improvisation one does not understand hackers by the term „“necessarily a specialist. Dependent on the area, in which he works, „the hacker can quite stand “as synonym for an amateur, who one chop for the solution of a problem used, because he does not know the otherwise usual way.

Besides the opinion quite exists that each humans, who adapt an article in a Wiki or provided are a hacker (excerpt from the discussion contribution of the Wikipedia to the term „hackers “from December 2002: „… the Wikipedia is nevertheless a hacker project, even based on the liberty thought in the sense of GNU, and everyone, which began or worked already times only one article over again, is in principle a hacker… People, those within the Wikipedia keyboard tests operate and article contents indiscriminately rauslöschen, are Cracker… “).

Generally a strong association between the terms exists „hackers “and „Computerfreak “(particularly it hardly Computerfreaks gives, those not to program cannot not be been versed or with network and safety technology). Also people, which show an affinity for the hacker culture , call themselves gladly „“or „Geek “Nerd, which characterizes a special kind of the Computerfreaks in the computer context.

The term „hackers “can be considered also as synonym to someone, which can enter its command lines at the computer in a very fast kind. Here often to the tapping noise is referred, which sounds in such a way, as if someone would chop.

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definitions from „the jargon file “

the definitions pointed out so far provide an overview of it, which the term encloses „hackers “. Besides the following definitions from the specializedspecific dictionary try to clarify „jargon file “ , which abilities and personality characteristics have many hackers to The:

Hacker: (sense-figurativy someone, to extend which can manufacture furniture only with an axe as tool

  1. ) contrary to most humans, only all all this prefers to learn, is it a person, who gladly the details by programmable systems investigated and after possibilities searches, whose power spectrum. According to RFC1392, which glossary of the Internet users defined as international standard of the conceptualness in the Internet, it as follows: A person, who enjoys about it, a profound understanding of the internal function of a system to have a computer and from computer networks in the special one.
  2. To set up someone, which programs full enthusiasm (or even as possessed), or prefers it to program, as theories about programming.
  3. A person, who is able, things in accordance with their chop VALUE to estimate and appreciate.
  4. A person, who can program in a fast kind well.
  5. An expert of a special application or one, which works regularly thereby or on it; like „an UNIX hacker “. (The definitions 1 to 5 are connected, whereby the designated persons are to be summarized)
  6. an expert or an enthusiast of any kind. Someone can be for example in the field of activity astronomy a hacker.
  7. Someone, which enjoys the intellectual challenge overcoming or going around in creative way borders.
  8. (devaluing) to seek out a malicious Störenfried, which tries, through herumschnüffeln sensitive information - in the sense of „password hacker “, „network hacker “. The correct designation for this is Cracker.

(Freely out „The jargon file “[ 1 translates], version 4.4.7)

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the problematic partitioning between hackers and Crasher and/or. Cracker

strong simplified expressed, loosen hackers of problems and develop something, whereas Crasher produce problems and/or. something destroy. In the detail hackers develop for example information networks, make attentive on safety gaps (and it reaches in such a way that these are closed), write partially Freeware or open SOURCE software or work constructionally in another surrounding field, which fits the numerous Insiderdefinitionen of the term „hackers “. Crasher paralyze however computer and telephone networks, delete or change important data, enrich themselves in criminal kind or terrorize its fellow men by intentionally caused of crashes of the computers. But at the latest if it concerns politically motivated actions, it becomes evident that it lacks a really clear dividing line between „well “and „badly “, which makes such a partitioning unpractical.

In contrast to this most humans use „hackers “further as generic term, both („good “) the hackers and („bad “) the Cracker and/or. Crasher includes, and dominates so the colloquial meaning. Related to the IT - security became the term „hackers “in this form long an elementary term.

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sometimes „Black “, „White “and „Grey Hats

“in the IT-Security-scene is used a partitioning of the hackers in „Black “, „White “and „Grey Hats “, which on the organization from old Western - films is based, which characterizes „cowboys neutrally “due to their hat color as „badly “(black), „well “(knows) or „“(grey):

  • Black Hats („black hats “) act with criminal energy and intend for example to damage the target system or steal data. Among this sub-group one ranks also the Cyberpunker, which are considered as true masters of their subject, but live only according to their own rules.
  • White having („white hat “) used its knowledge within both the laws and the hacker ethics, for example by implementing professionally penetration tests.
  • Grey Hats („grey hats “) offend possibly against laws or restrictive interpretations of the hacker ethics, however for reaching a more ambitious goal. For example by the publication of safety gaps, in order to make a denial impossible and to force the responsible persons to repair these. Grey Hats are characterised by the fact that they are to be classified not clearly as „well “or „badly “.

Humans fit however rarely clearly under only one of the hats. In practice this partitioning takes therefore only to little purchase to material existing persons and stands rather as conceptualness for a certain kind of chopping.

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hacker magazines

since the 80ern exist a set of underground magazines, how that 2600 magazine and the Phrack magazine, with which hackers themselves supplied themselves with information. This development was pushed by the Phreaks early 70's, those in illegal underground magazines like the TAP their information passing on. There are however also magazines, which are completely legal. A well-known magazine is e.g. the data centrifuge (short: DS). It is published by the chaos computer club monthly and is present also in electronic form to the Download .

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Famous hackers

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of technique specialists

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ethical hackers

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criminal Cracker

  • Robert Tappan Morris wrote the Morris to 1988 - worm.
  • Kevin Mitnick is a hacker well-known for Social engineering, who could be seized only after several years escape by the FBI.
  • Lex Luthor, which created 1984 the legendary group of hackers of Legion OF Doom and at the beginning of the 90's a hacker war by US secret service Secret service began in the operation sin much to smash became.
  • Karl cook broke in end of the 80's as well as Markus Hess into military US networks, in order to sell data to the KGB; at first out of for idealistic reasons and curiosity; to finance later around thereby its drug craze.
  • Kevin Poulsen manipulated telephone systems of Radiosendern, in order to win with profit plays cars, journeys and money; by the FBI one arrested later.
  • John T. Draper alias Cap'n Crunch was the first Phreaker and/or. Telephone hacker. It created it to telephone free of charge and discovered further methods for the manipulation of voice grade channels.
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further information

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see also:

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literature

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Web on the left of German

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Web on the left of English

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