At the turn of the XX-XXI centuries, mankind went through a large-scale revolution in the field of mass communications. The creation of the World Wide Web has contributed to the emergence of such a unique phenomenon as the Internet space. The development of new technologies has led to the emergence of a special subculture of hackers, specialists involved in the development, study and implementation of computer innovations.
History of occurrence
Today, information is not only an educational function, but also a powerful tool for manipulation, a means of achieving any goals. With the growing importance of the Internet in the life of all mankind, people have appeared who seek to delve deeper and more specifically into the technical issues of programming and the hidden capabilities of the World Wide Web.
To understand the goals and objectives of this social group, first you need to understand in more detail what constitutes a subculture of "hackers". Briefly answering this question is not easy, since their community is quite specific and closed to the majority. Although this phenomenon is not so new, since the beginning of the era of scientific research, there have always been people who aspire to be discoverers, to find new technologies and methods for their practical application.
The "hackers" subculture, the year of organization of which is very difficult to name, has emerged as a narrow community of leading figures who seek to know and understand the system more deeply, to be able to change and control it. In the 80s of the twentieth century, programmers experienced the rise of their movement, their work was aimed at creating and improving new technologies. Many of them turned out to be real enthusiasts, promoted free Internet and universal access to all resources.
However, with the increasing role of the media in the public, economic and political life of the country, with the advent of limitless possibilities in the Internet space, the nature of the actions of programmers is changing. The era of online fraud, cyber attacks and terrorism is beginning.
Definition
The emergence of personal computers was the starting point for the emergence of the movement, which can now be called "youth subculture" hackers "." The translation of this definition from English has no analogues in the Russian language, the verb to hack in the usual sense means “hack”, “shred”, and in the field of information technology - “hack the system” or “patch it”. It all depends on the direction of activity.
There are several understandings of what constitutes a hacker subculture. In English, as well as in Russian, the word has many meanings, and they all reflect one or another side of the specifics of their work. The general definition can be formulated as follows:
- This is a person who is fond of and enjoys exploring the details of software systems;
- seeking to explore the maximum technological capabilities;
- one who is an expert and enthusiast in his work;
- loving to find answers to the intellectual tasks of the system.
Unfortunately, in recent years, the youth subculture “hackers” is perceived as a community of criminals who extract confidential information or steal money from people's accounts. Crackers (so called dishonest programmers) are really much more, the temptation of quick and easy money is too great.
Kinds
Despite the dissimilarity of development processes in comparison with other cultural groups of society, the hacker subculture has all the signs of social differentiation, it has its own traditions, language, style of behavior, manifesto and own ideology. So, Eric Raymond, a programmer and activist of the movement, is also the compiler and editor of the encyclopedic dictionary, which contains all the data about their particular slang.
In this environment, there is a clear structure, the status of the cracker depends on his reputation, and the assessment can be taken only from peers or more advanced operators. Usually they are distinguished depending on the motives of the activity: the so-called Black hat and White hat. White hats investigate the system, identify weaknesses and then fix the problem, while black hats, or crackers, carry out unauthorized hacking of the system, steal information or money, and also create malware - viruses.
The latter are none other than ordinary criminals; only the environment and theft methods change. At the moment, strict punitive measures are applied in all countries of the world towards such persons.
Perception Features
At the beginning of the twenty-first century, scientific works appear aimed at studying what the hackers subculture is. Briefly about them, one can say the following: research is devoted to the search for problems of the new era of high technology, the study of the impact of this culture on society and youth. This interest is not accidental, most teenagers perceive hackers as a kind of pirates, heroes, with one wave of their hands capable of accomplishing something unimaginable.
The world of technology is a rather closed structure, especially since the terminology and communication style of system operators are inaccessible to the understanding of ordinary people. Therefore, society presents them, based on stereotypes about what the hackers subculture is. Clothing, hairstyles, the manner of speaking and their other habits are known to us only conditionally, therefore the most incredible conjectures are born.
In the minds of many, a programmer is a kind of plain, untidy young man, a virgin and a loser in real life, spending days at a computer. His strength and knowledge are concentrated in the digital world, there he can be both a great seer and a big fraudster.
Internet as a social environment
The hacker subculture began to actively develop and develop its own principles with the advent and global spread of the World Wide Web. The causes of this phenomenon are of economic, political and social nature. For many people, the Internet has become a place where you can show your abilities, arrange a life and find self-determination.
If at the dawn of the emergence of computers, operationists worked on improving cumbersome computers, then at the end of the 20th and beginning of the 21st centuries their activities have completely moved into the virtual world. Now there is a subculture of "hackers", and its representatives operate with large information and intellectual resources and actively use the Internet space for their needs.
The World Wide Web is becoming more and more like social reality. There is a political, economic, legal and spiritual sphere where people receive information and even work. Every year, virtual reality is replenished with new residents and is gaining wider geographical distribution.
Values
This community is quite fragmented and, most importantly, conspiratorial. Their slogans, rules and laws are not binding, but some of them have nevertheless become general principles of the movement. The value attitudes were formulated by the first ideologists Stephen Levy, L. Blankenship, E. Raymond, the main points that the “hackers” subculture promotes and seeks are as follows:
- unlimited access to computers;
- free information on the web;
- struggle with control from one center;
- indifference to skin color and religion;
- proclamation of non-standard thinking;
- release of programs available to all;
- assistance to those who need technical support;
- transfer of knowledge and skills;
- computers can make a difference.
Many statements echo the hippie slogans, proclaiming peace and freedom in everything. But it is worth noting that some well-known programmers really adhered to these rules, so Linus Torvalds developed the free Linux operating system, and Richard Stallman devoted almost half his life to promoting the idea of free software. On the Web you can often find propaganda documents and photos of hackers: the original manifest, emblems, magazines and other information.
Lifestyle, clothing style
If in the environment of rappers, emo, hippies, etc., the style of clothing is an important distinguishing factor, a way of self-expression, then other signs of identification have been established among software experts. The main thing is to gain a personal reputation, because everyone seeks to show their individuality and not go on about stereotypes or fashion.
They spend most of their time in the virtual world, which has largely affected the appearance and habits of people who consider themselves followers of a community called "hacker subculture." The manner of dressing conforms to several principles - convenience, freedom and reliability. Therefore, it is impossible, in principle, to single out any special detail that emphasizes a person’s belonging to this community.
Those who want to attract attention often use t-shirts with catchy inscriptions or pictures. Most often, they contain a specific idea, which adheres to the hacker subculture. Clothing style does not emphasize the nuances of work, but, on the contrary, makes a hacker an ordinary person.
Communication Features
Despite the stereotype that hackers spend most of their time aimlessly behind a computer screen, they are very well-read and educated people. The range of their interests is wide, but most often associated with scientific and technical literature. There is a special tradition of talking in this environment. The sub-culture "hackers", in English meaning "to cut, " "to chop, " offers to use only terminology, phrases, expressions and graphic signs that are understandable to its representatives.
In this environment, it is very fashionable to have an additional lesson or hobby, sometimes radically different from the main activity: music, theater, computer games, radio, designing machines or useful devices.
The hacker subculture and its features are also manifested in the example of their communication with each other and with other people. Psychologists who study the personal qualities of representatives of this profession note some common features for most of them: almost all of them are rather closed, live in their own world, and therefore they treat people very restrained and rarely can understand and share the emotional state of another person.
Individual characteristics
The youth structure of hackers is very difficult to study, its representatives are individualists by nature, try to develop their own outlook on life, they are rarely exposed to other people's influence. Most of these people have very good education, and the nature of their professions is very different: from linguists to mathematicians. And the reason for their enthusiasm for high technology is most often the dissatisfaction with the acquired knowledge, the search for innovative solutions to problems.
The specificity of the work requires the programmer not only high intelligence, but also good memory - the ability to quickly memorize and, if necessary, extract certain knowledge. Money and recognition are a strong incentive for them, but most of all the excitement is the search for solutions to complex and interesting problems.
Features of work
Anyone who considers himself a good connoisseur of computer systems cannot be called a specialist in IT technology. These people are true professionals in their field, and they have been gaining the necessary authority for years. The details of their work are not easy to learn, largely due to the difficulty of understanding by uninitiated people, as well as in connection with the secrecy of some projects.
Celebrity hackers - Kevin Poulsen, Kevin Mitnik, Julian Assange and Chris Kasperki - after the end of their career, crackers eagerly shared their knowledge and experience with the public, tried to warn young people from mistakes and criminal moves. It was the founders of the movement who created the special ethics and principles of “adventure and discovery” (or “do no harm”). Unfortunately, a new generation of programmers is often self-taught who have come to the profession for quick money or high-profile fame.
Many large organizations strive to have such an employee on or off the staff, since no economic, political or cultural activity is possible today without the use of high technology in their work.
Problems with law
On the part of society and the state, a very straightforward assessment of the activities of high-tech specialists has been formed; very often members of this fraternity are considered potential criminals. Although the latter have their own arguments, according to which unused computer resources are not considered someone else's property. Therefore, in every country they try to think through and organize a legal system of punishment.
In Russia, several articles are envisaged for cybercrime, including fraud, distribution of pornographic materials, illegal access, or the creation and implementation of malicious programs.
Periodicity
Several generations of the hacker movement can be distinguished, of course, only “white” figures are taken into account:
- community pioneers worked on the creation of computers, these were employees of computer institutes, intellectuals and enthusiasts trying to realize their crazy and ambitious plans;
- in the late 1970s, they actively introduced personal computers into life, improved software;
- in the 1980s, all major programs and networks were created, and at that time value guidelines and those principles that must be adhered to were formulated;
- the modern generation of hackers is successfully mastering cyberspace, trying to impede global control over the entire Internet.
Thus, it can be noted that the development of this subculture is part of the improvement of computer technology, these two phenomena are completely interconnected.
Celebrities
As in any culture, among hackers there are leaders, experts and legends, their life and work become methodological material for novice programmers. At the dawn of the development of computer technology, they were still driven by the interest of discoverers, the idea of finding adventure and new solutions.
One of the first creators of the malicious virus was Robert Morris. In 1988, the Morris Worm paralyzed hundreds of computers, and later was charged with this violation. Already in the 2000s, Adrian Lamo successfully found errors in the security systems of large Internet companies, although many still consider him only a great PR man.
McKinnon Gary became the most scandalous cracker in recent decades, he managed to penetrate the NASA and Pentagon systems, he also justified himself by wanting to get information about the concealment by the American government of facts of contact with extraterrestrial civilizations. This community is rather narrow, all figures are familiar with each other, and on the Internet you can easily find a joint photo of hackers.
Some of them dedicated their lives not only to programming problems, they expressed an active social position through social networks or writing. Julian Assage released a book about the life and work of hackers ten years ago. He became famous for the fact that he exposed the top-secret information of many countries on the pages of the Wikileaks website he created.
Scandals
The modern generation perceives crackers as pirates, noble robbers fighting the system and world domination. Unfortunately, under this manifesto people often hide far from benevolent intentions. The so-called crackers, or malicious crackers, practice in various areas of criminal activity, from simple fraud and obtaining secret information to the destruction of entire systems.
Very often, hackers are at the center of major public scandals: naked photos of celebrities, exposing biographies of famous politicians, throwing inaccurate information onto the Web - this is an incomplete list of robbery by unscrupulous programmers. Now everyone has heard the story of the Russian trace in the issue of holding elections in the United States. Ostensibly, our experts, under the guise of a government, intervened in the American election campaign and thereby directly helped the election of Donald Trump. No evidence has yet been submitted, but a scandal has erupted around the world.
