shirin71
08-15-2011, 11:47 AM
Computer Culture
Unmasking Virus Writer and Hackers
When we think of people who make our lives miserable by hacking into computers or spreading malicious viruses,most of us imagine an unpopular teenage boy,brilliant but geeky,ventinghis frustrations from the safety of suburban bedroom
Actually,these stereotypes are just that stereotypes- according to Sarah Gordon,n expert in computer viruses and security technology,and a Senior Research Fellow with Symantec Security Response.Since 1992,Gordon has studied the psychology of virus writers."A hacker or a virus writer is just as likelyto be the guy next door to you,"she says,"or the kid at the check out line bagging your groceries.Your average hacker is not necessarilysome Goth typedressed entirely in black and sporting a nose ring:she may very well be a fifthy-year-old female."
The virus writer s Gordon has become to know have varied backgrounds;while predominately male,some are female. Some are solidly academic, while others areathletic. Many have friendship with members of the opposite ***, good relationships with their parents and families; most are popular with their peers. They dont spend all their time in the basement. One virus writer volunteers in his local library, working with eldery people. One of them is a poet and a musician, another is an electrical engineer, and others work for a university quantom physics department. You wouldnt pick them out of a lineup as being the perpetrator
Unmasking Virus Writer and Hackers
When we think of people who make our lives miserable by hacking into computers or spreading malicious viruses,most of us imagine an unpopular teenage boy,brilliant but geeky,ventinghis frustrations from the safety of suburban bedroom
Actually,these stereotypes are just that stereotypes- according to Sarah Gordon,n expert in computer viruses and security technology,and a Senior Research Fellow with Symantec Security Response.Since 1992,Gordon has studied the psychology of virus writers."A hacker or a virus writer is just as likelyto be the guy next door to you,"she says,"or the kid at the check out line bagging your groceries.Your average hacker is not necessarilysome Goth typedressed entirely in black and sporting a nose ring:she may very well be a fifthy-year-old female."
The virus writer s Gordon has become to know have varied backgrounds;while predominately male,some are female. Some are solidly academic, while others areathletic. Many have friendship with members of the opposite ***, good relationships with their parents and families; most are popular with their peers. They dont spend all their time in the basement. One virus writer volunteers in his local library, working with eldery people. One of them is a poet and a musician, another is an electrical engineer, and others work for a university quantom physics department. You wouldnt pick them out of a lineup as being the perpetrator