INTERESTING INFORMATION ABOUT HACKERS, CRACKERS AND MULTICOLORED HATS 

Dear students, readers, visitors and followers of the Genius Blog, today we will talk about Hacking. Most of us guise conjure up more or less the same image in mind when we hear the word “hacker”.   We imagine badly lit rooms full of piles of electronic equipment and multiple monitors displaying illegal or highly sensitive material. We picture “hackers” with dirty clothes, thick spectacles, long unruly hair and a cigarette in hand. Of course, they also only speak broken English with a heavy Russian or European Accent No doubt there are some hackers who lived up to these awful movie clichés. Do you really know what Hacking is? What is the word “Hack” means? Is really hacking a negative word? Is hacking used for theft only? How the world of hackers works? How to understand security measurements? We will get the entire answer trough this article.

So, let’s start from the history of hacking,

History of Hacking:

Bruce Sterling, American science fiction author, traces part of the roots of the computer underground to the Yippies(Youth International Party), a 1960s counterculture movement which published the Technological Assistance Program (TAP) newsletter. TAP was a phone phreaking newsletter that taught the techniques necessary for the unauthorized exploration of the phone network. Many people from the phreaking community are also active in the hacking community even today, and vice versa.

What is a word Hacking means?

Hacking means finding out weaknesses in an established system and exploiting them. A computer hacker is a person who finds out weaknesses in the computer and exploits them. Hackers may be motivated by a multitude of reasons, such as profit, protest, or challenge.  The subculture that has evolved around hackers is often referred to as the computer underground but it is now an open community.  In this controversy, the term hacker is reclaimed by computer programmers who argue that someone breaking into computers is better called a cracker, not making a difference between computer criminals (black hats) and computer security experts (white hats). Some white hat hackers claim that they also deserve the title hacker, and that only black hats should be called crackers.

Hackers:

Originally, the term “hackers” meant technical enthusiasts. That included people who enjoyed fiddling about, programming, soldering and naturally even analyzing the products and systems that were emerging for the first time. These experts considered the Robin Hoods of the technology world, since they often earned nothing for their knowledge and skills.

Crackers:

As per who were technically skilled but morally lacking began using their knowledge in the field illegally, it was time for a new term “Crackers” stopped into the picture. Originally, those who removed copy protection mechanisms from pc games or devised ways of circumventing any built in restrictions in the 80s were described as Crackers.

Multicolored Hat

However in the internet age, the term cracker was also found to be inadequate for describing the activities of the time. There had to be new discussion- the term White Hat, Grey Hat and Black Hat emerged. The hat analogy comes from old cowboy films in which the villains invariably wore black hats, the noble heroes wore white and the unknown characters wore grey hat.

US State Police Hires Hackers:

The FBI has employed a large number of hackers and former cybercriminals as informants, claims Eric Corley, Editor of the American hacker magazine 2600. According to the security experts hackers forums are rumored to be patrolled regularly by FBI spices just like the chat rooms used by members of the anonymous organization.

Hackers have their principals also:

“Access to computers should be limitless and complete.” Reads the first paragraph of a hacker ethics manual that Steven Levy had published in his book “Hackers” in 1884. The sentiment is said to have been deeply absorbed by youngsters who studied at MIT in 60s. For them it meant:

“Computers can change your life for the better.”

Some Famous People you may know:

1. Steve Jobs (Founder of Apple Inc.): Steve jobs, who himself created closed computer ecosystems like no other, was once a    hacker. He, along with Steve Wozniak and John T Draper, created the Blue Box with which one could make long-distance calls free of cost. “It was illegal but we were fascinate by it and wanted to make the best gadget in the world.”

2. Ankit Fadia (Author, Computer Security Consultant): He started a website called "HackingTruths". At 15, his book on Ethical Hacking made him the youngest author to be published by Macmillan India. Fadia has also sponsored Singapore Management University's "Ankit Fadia Study Award", which consists of a $1000 cash prize and Certificate which is annually awarded to "an outstanding student" in the Information Security and Trust Course under the Bachelor of Science (Information System Management) degree.

Hackers are rated on rankmyhack.com the more popular the victim, the more points the hacker earns.

Rank	Website	Points Given
1	huffingtonpost.com	1685393
2	terra.com.br	731707
3	free.fr	731707
4	mtvyouthicon.in.com	530035
5	Attuverselivetv.att.com	414364
6	noaa.gov	327963
7	baidu.com	300000
8	altervista.com	286806
9	monster.com	280373
10	abril.com.br	268336

                                               (Data from Chip magazine February, 2012)

Reference Website and Magazine:

-          Wikipedia.org

-          Chip magazine(February,2012)

-          Ankitfadia.in

Technology in Classrooms

Technology is not a Revolution but its an Evolution. It has evolved and become more central to teaching and learning. It acts as a catalyst for both teaching and learning in the classrooms. Educators must prepare for a technology-rich future and keep up with change by adopting effective strategies that infuse lessons with appropriate technologies. Technology has been proved to accommodate learning styles and to be an effective motivator for students with specific learning needs. Moreover, when technology is used as a tool to support students in performing authentic tasks, the students are in the position of defining their goals, making design decisions, and evaluating their progress. The teacher is no longer the center of attention as the dispenser of information, but rather plays the role of facilitator, setting project goals and providing guidelines and resources, moving from student to student or group to group. Technology-based tasks involve many subtasks, leading to situations where students need help and find their neighbor a convenient source of assistance. Students who have mastered specific computer skills generally derive pride and enjoyment from helping others. So the another effect of technology cited by a great majority of educators is an increased inclination on the part of students to work cooperatively and to provide peer tutoring. Students were able to handle more complex assignments and do more with higher-order skills because of the supports and capabilities provided by technology. One new technological advancement that we see in our classrooms is the use of Smart-Boards. The whiteboard is a touch screen and when learning with a Smart-Board students are engaged and listening instead of taking notes.  Taking notes is distracting and does not allow the students to learn to their full potential.  Teachers are able to send the notes to the students at a later time so they can review on their own, but while the lesson is going on the students are engaged in learning.  Smart-Boards are also beneficial for students with learning disabilities. One benefit of the Smart-Board for children with disabilities is the capability of making the keyboard larger on the touch-screen.  This makes it easier for students to see and manage independently. It also increases the attentiveness. Educators have now transformed into Edutainers because education itself needs to be entertaining to students. Thus I believe in Touching the Future- Technological Way..!!!