Re: Any Ethical Hackers?

From: Alun Jones (alun@texis.com)
Date: 02/10/03 

From: alun@texis.com (Alun Jones)
Date: Mon, 10 Feb 2003 21:59:33 GMT

In article <d796a9b4.0302101018.2619de19@posting.google.com>, natwod@juno.com
(NeoNatwad) wrote:
>I am just curious... Are there any "Ethical Hackers" in this forum;
>hackers who hack simply for the fun of it, or to let webmasters know
>of holes in their security?

Depends on your definition of "ethical" and "hacker". In many places, the
term "hacker" means "anyone who likes tinkering with computers", and there is
some unhappiness that the mainstream media prefers to use the term to "anyone
who like breaking into computers". You seem to be fitting in with that latter
category, and I'd personally claim that you're looking for something that does
not exist. It is _not_ ethical to test the security of a system whose
security you have not been invited to test.

>I'm also wondering if there are unethical hackers in this group,
>hanging around and trying to hear security "advice".
>
>I personally support the idea of "Ethical Hacking", it even sounds
>like fun, though maybe dangerous. I am doing a college report on
>hackers and would like to know if there are any here?

As you note, "maybe dangerous". You learn on your own systems, only.
Full-stop. End of discussion. If you endeavour to learn on other people's
systems, your lack of knowledge may end up with you accidentally causing
damage to that system. There's a whole side-discussion centering on whether
such fragile systems will survive long anyway, but the key is that it's not
yours to break, or to test.

If you want to break systems, break your own. Once you do, share your
findings by all means, but please don't consider that you will be thanked, or
that you are engaging in an ethical act, if you endeavour to make intrusions
into a system where you have not been asked to do so.

Alun.
~~~~

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