Sociology
Question (8 Credits)
Who are hackers, Why do they hack. What can we do to protect ourselves from hackers Etc.
IT and business professionals are concerned with the following issue hacker’s in today's contemporary competitive environment. In no more than one page of text, explain your reason for selecting it.
Answer
The term hacker has become a word familiar to those who work in information technology, business, and personal home computing. Hackers are generally referred to as individuals who break into areas secured by various businesses and organizations who try to protect important and confidential information. Hackers break into these restricted areas for many reasons including gaining access to valuable information, improve their own skills, or simply for personal bragging rights among fellow hackers. The sociology behind hacking is quite interesting. What prompts an individual to engage in this type of illegal and deviant behavior? What does the typical hacker look like and what can we do to protect ourselves against hacking?
There is no one stereotypical profile of a hacker; however, most are male. They need to be adept in technology but many think of hackers as being a “computer nerd”; however, this is not necessarily the case. Hackers need to possess a high intelligence and ability to retain countless amounts of detailed information in order to be successful, but it has been found that the more successful a hacker is, the more diverse interests he/she has. Generally, a hacker is college-educated and many partake in self-educating to learn more and gain better technological skills. Hackers have a deep interest in science fiction, music, and read as much as other individuals watch TV. Hackers are more concerned with technology and the toys that come with it rather than playing or watching sports, but those who do participate in solitary sports that require attention and concentration. One downfall of the hacker is that he has a difficult time identifying with other people and are more self-absorbed and arrogant than most. Hackers are individuals fueled by something that encourages them to engage in the deviant behavior.
For many hackers, the challenge of doing what can’t be done is attractive to most and they are excited by the work they do-despite it being illegal. Just as the individuals who hack, their reasons are just as diverse. Here are various reasons that individuals engage in hacking: they are fueled by curiosity, bored, appreciate the challenge, because they’ve been hired to analyze a system, and because they can.
Because hacking is a real to many individuals and businesses, we have been forced to guard against these threats. Some hacking happens just by mistake, but it is important that businesses protect against this and deliberate attacks. Businesses have invested millions of dollars to upgrade security networks and other systems to prevent hackers from entering and obtaining confidential information. Network security is an area in the IT industry that has become extremely important in protecting against various threats. As an individual computer user, there are a few things that can be done to protect against hacking: pay attention to passwords, install a firewall on your personal computer, keep your system updated with security patches and bug fixes, keep a backup of important data just in case, and don’t fall prey to the various schemes and solicitations that crowd up email.
