Hacking

What is Hacking?

Hacking is the unauthorized use of a network's of computer's resources. It is the technical effort to affect a piece of technical equipment(computer or network). They often use malicious software to effect these systems. They will break in, use and/or damage your computer against your will! They do it for fun, to make money or to be nasty.  A hacker is a person who breaks into computers and computer networks for profit, in protest, or because they are motivated by the challenge. The subculture that has evolved around hackers is often referred to as the computer underground but it is now an open community.

How can you prevent it?

You can buy anti-virus software or other computer protection programs which will warn you, tell  you, protect you and remove any corrupt programs or stop suspicious actions. There are many ways when a hacker would try to scam you into receiving a file etc, so that you will take the bait and help him with the Trojan/virus installation on your hard disk drive. If you need just one way to stop being hacked, the best way is to install an all-in-one solution with anti-virus, firewall and anti-spyware solution. You can use things like on Norton internet security and zone alarm but there are many others on the market.

Example Cases

In 1999 the Melissa virus was the first of its kind to wreak damage on a global scale. Written by David Smith (then 30), Melissa spread to more than 300 companies across the world completely destroying their computer networks. Damages reported amounted to nearly $400 million. Smith was arrested and sentenced to five years in prison.

Sony, Marks & Spencer, Marriott, Hilton, the IMF have all recently been high profile victims of hacking and fraud.