Hacker (computer security)

In common usage, a hacker is a person who breaks into computers and computer networks, either for profit or motivated by the challenge.^[1] The subculture that has evolved around hackers is often referred to as the computer underground but is now an open community.^[2]

Other uses of the word hacker exist that are not related to computer security (computer programmer and home computer hobbyists), but these are rarely used by the mainstream media because of the common stereotype that is in TV and movies. Before the media described the person who breaks into computers as a hacker there was a hacker community. This group was a community of people who had a large interest in computer programming, often sharing, without restrictions, the source code for the software they wrote. These people now refer to the cyber-criminal hackers as "crackers", a term which has not been picked up by the media or general public

History

Main article: Timeline of hacker history

In today's society understanding the term Hacker is complicated because it has many different definitions. The term Hacker can be traced back to MIT (Massachusetts Institute Technology). MIT was the first institution to offer a course in computer programming and computer science and it is here in 1960 where a group of MIT students taking a lab on Artificial Intelligence first coined this word. These students called themselves hackers because they were able to take programs and have them perform actions not intended for that program. “The term was developed on the basis of a practical joke and feeling of excitement because the team member would “hack away” at the keyboard hours at a time.” (Moore R., 2006).^[4]

Hacking developed alongside "Phone Phreaking", a term referred to exploration of the phone network without authorization, and there has often been overlap between both technology and participants. The first recorded hack was accomplished by "Joe Engressia" also known as The Whistler. Engressia is known as the grandfather of Phreaking. His hacking technique was that he could perfectly whistle a tone into a phone and make free call.^[5] Bruce Sterling traces part of the roots of the computer underground to the Yippies, a 1960s counterculture movement which published the Technological Assistance Program (TAP) newsletter. ^[6]. Other sources of early 70s hacker culture can be traced towards more beneficial forms of hacking, including MIT labs or the homebrew club, which later resulted in such things as early personal computers or the open source movement.