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Teenage Hackers Motivated By Morality Not Money, Study Finds (theguardian.com)

Posted by msmash on from the why-we-do-what-we-do dept.

Teenage hackers are motivated by idealism and impressing their mates rather than money, according to a study by the National Crime Agency. From a report: The law enforcement organisation interviewed teenagers and children as young as 12 who had been arrested or cautioned for computer-based crimes. It found that those interviewed, who had an average age of 17, were unlikely to be involved in theft, fraud or harassment. Instead they saw hacking as a "moral crusade", said Paul Hoare, senior manager at the NCA's cybercrime unit, who led the research. Others were motivated by a desire to tackle technical problems and prove themselves to friends, the report found. Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Hoare said: "They don't understand the implications on business, government websites and individuals."

5 of 74 comments (clear)

  1. No shit? by grasshoppa · · Score: 2

    Seriously, how do these chuckleheads get funding for studying the obvious?

    In other news, researchers are asking for funding to study whether water is wet or if the sun is hot.

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    1. Re:No shit? by BeerCat · · Score: 3, Informative

      Since a large number of "hand-wringing concerned citizens" are convinced that all hackers are in it for the money, then it's good to have research that confirms to non-techies what techies have always known at a gut level.

      --
      "She's furniture with a pulse"
    2. Re:No shit? by networkBoy · · Score: 2

      It's obvious to us because as a group here we were (or still are) these kids.
      To the average LEO and politard this is very non obvious because (particularly in the politard's case) they can't fathom operating based solely on idealism and not greed.

      politard: *any* career politician.

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    3. Re:No shit? by cavreader · · Score: 2

      It would be better if they were only after financial gain because every "moral crusade" waged throughout recorded history has left a trail of dead bodies.

  2. Re:Moral Crusaders by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2

    Well, the problem with moral crusaders is that they are easily manipulated by others. If you, for example, start a campaign to make people think that toilet paper is harmful to the planet, a moral planetary crusader can be easily made to attack toilet paper manufacturers. That does not mean the heart of the moral crusader is in the wrong place, however.

    A teenage hacker, will experience a rush of "power" - they can suddenly do something that their peers cannot. To prove themselves, they demonstrate their "power", and since they are not bad people by nature, they'll try to use their power in a way to forward their "moral crusade". The consideration of whether it's legal or not does not stop them - why would it? Chances are they broke the law getting access to be able to do what they did before they did it already, so what's one more wrong? Hence you end up with misguided attempts at vigilante justice, or just plain old fun.

    The Hacker's Manifesto, though showing it's age, applies equally well today as the day it was first published in phrack in 1986. (http://phrack.org/issues/7/3.html#article)

    I don't blame misguided teens. The amoral arseholes who should know better but choose to steal for a living - they are a completely different story. And the governments that steal our tax money to do even worse are just as deplorable (it's going to be a government hacker which will start a war).