The Hacking of America: Who's Doing It, Why, and How

(Hardback)

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This is the first book to explore and profile the personalities and behavioral traits of more than 200 self-admitted hackers. Hackers get a bad rap. Their skills are coveted by businesses, industries, and even society as a whole, yet they're often misunderstood and frequently despised. Is their vilification justified This is the first book to use previously validated phychological inventories to explore and profile the personalities and behavioral traits of more than 200 self-admitted hackers. Many of the profiled are at the top of their game, revered by both the good hackers ("white hats") and their more malevolent peers ("black hats"). While there are serious reasons to fear the darker elements of the hacker community, there is also much to admire in their nobler counterparts. Fascinating case studies on hackers who have been caught and convicted of their crimes, as well as those betrayed by their peers, offer a unique, credible understanding of what makes hackers tick. The authors examine current laws meant to control hacking and its collateral crimes - stalking and terrorism--along with other means of reining in the irresponsible "scriptkiddies" and vicious "black hats." Moderated and balanced, this book is an easy-to-read, authoritative source of information for anyone interested in who hackers are, and how much we should worry about them.

Reviews

This informative and well-written book deals exactly with what the title states. We are afraid of computer hackers yet do not know much about who hackers are, their motivation, or personalities, and think of them in stereotypical ways. Schell and Dodge clearly present a broad picture of people in the hacker community and their activitiesi.e., the Black Hat (the kind of hackers we often stereotype) and the White Hat. . . . This interesting book will appeal to both specialists and laypersons, since no one can escape hacker activities. Highly recommended. Public and academic levels; all collections. * Choice *

Author Bio

Bernadette H. Schell is Founding Dean of the new University of Ontario Institute of Technology in the Greater Toronto area. Previously, she was Director of the School of Commerce and Administration, Laurentian University, Canada._President of an HR consulting firm, she lectures widely on stress management, executive stress, and stalking protection measures. John L. Dodge is Professor in the School of Commerce and Administration, Laurentian University, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. As a partner in a management consulting firm, he lectures and consults widely on e-commerce and organizational strategy issues. Prior to his academic appointment, he was president and CEO of a venture capital firm, and vice-president of development for a mining and development company.