Analysis The American Perspective On Hackers Essay

Analysis: The American Perspective On Hackers Essay, Research Paper

The issue of public information has always been a controversy in our world. One of our country’s founding arguments was based on the necessity of free speech and free information. Many now believe that our government is being overly restrictive on information, blocking and controlling some aspects of free speech that first amendment advocates feel are necessary to maintain our American society. These advocates of free information have been using the nickname “hackers” for over twenty years, but improper use by the media has stretched the word to slanderous levels. Hackers are now stereotyped as mindless vandals and miscreants, although the word “hacker” has been used as a term for computer programmers and technicians since the late 1970s. Modern-day hackers refer to themselves as intelligent socio-political activists who want to raise social awareness of threatening problems. Governments worldwide are trying to persecute hackers when vandals, not hackers, are most often the ones breaking laws and causing damage. The conflict between hackers and the American public is a deeply rooted standoff, caused by misinformation and sensationalism from the media and the government.

To evaluate and analyze this conflict objectively, both points of view must be put into proper perspective. This was a simple task for me, because I am a very technically oriented person who does not get lost in the “computer jargon” used by both the “hackers” and the political forces. I have worked as a security engineer for three Internet Service Providers. I am presently a security programmer at the second-largest private Internet Service Provider in Tampa. To do my job, I must to understand the thoughts and methods of the cyber-delinquents often misnamed as “hackers.” This experience has given me a strong perspective of both the intruder and victim’s side.

Firstly, take the view of the American people. This includes people who do and do not have computers at home, and do not understand their core functions. This group also makes up the majority of the users on the Internet. Most of them are home users with no intentions of understanding the machine they own. They see “hackers” as being electronic vandals and information thieves, breaking computer networks and destroying data. They fear anyone with cyber-power, because they do not understand the abilities of such individuals. This fear is primarily hatched from sensationalistic movies and articles written on “hackers.” It exists almost solely in consequence to the actions of the media. The irrationality of this fear is proven by the contrasting attitude of technically oriented society.

The technically oriented part of society is made up of (at the very minimum) very advanced home users, capable of modifying parts of their computer and fixing most problems. This sect also includes network administrators and operators, most programmers, and most computer hardware specialists. Not all programmers or hardware specialists fall under this description, because many of them do not have or need a full understanding of a computer in order to complete their job. These technically oriented people have enough knowledge about computers so as to not automatically resort to fear. Most of them understand the vast difference between a cyber-vandal and a true hacker. In fact, most of them have acted as either a cyber-vandal, hacker, or both at some time in their past. They generally see that actual hackers are not intent on damaging things. Actual hackers are content with the free spread of information and thought. The people that technically inclined individuals avoid and sometimes fear are the delinquents and vandals who find it amusing to damage and ruin data. In an attempt to make people think they are anything more than attention-starved brats with computers, these vandals prefer to be called hackers.

The most amazing set of opinions comes from the Government. Our Government is broken down into two parts: the technically-advanced (such as the CIA, NSA, FBI, and Secret Service) and the common men (such as Congress, Protection agencies, and Policing forces.) Our technically advanced sector of Government has notoriously been known as one of the best worldwide in catching information vandals and thieves. They have used the word “hacker” to describe these outcasts of the true online hacker society, giving true hackers a bad name for the rest of the government to bash into the ground. However, they too have been known to make some legally questionable decisions concerning computer crime.

One example is the case of Kevin Mitnick. He was arrested for breaking into the computers of Digital Equipment Corporation, as well as that of Tsutomu Shimomura, a computer security expert. He did not break anything. He read information for his own knowledge, not using a single word of it for his personal gain. Even considering these facts, he has been imprisoned without bail since February 15, 1995 and without a trial to convict him. He was supposed to face the court on January 19, 1999, but due to the prosecution refusing to release case information (a first-degree violation of civil rights), the court date has been delayed to April 20, 1999.

The Congress is responsible for writing laws to define “hackers” and the legal boundaries of their activities, although most of these