August 21, 2007

Hackers are just curious

Following research by a psychologist from the University of San Francisco, it is believed that many of the young hackers are more curious and looking for some excitement, rather than setting out to commit some major crime.

In a survey at a San Diego high school, 4,800 pupils were ask to complete a confidential questionnaire and it was found that 38% had copied software, 18% got into a website or computer without the owners permission, of which 16% took material, and finally 13% got into another system and changed a file, document or website without any permission.

It is boys, who are more likely to get into hacking or the copying of software, but the figure for doing any of this for financial gain is only 10%, the rest see it as a challenge.

There is no doubt that hacking and copying is illegal, but should kids be treated as criminals? Many people and companies this so.

Source [Criminal Lawyers]