A hacker is a person who creates and modifies computer software and computer hardware, including computer programming, administration, and security-related items. In computer programming, a 'hacker' is a programmer who hacks or reaches a goal by employing a series of modifications to exploit or extend existing code or resources. In computer security, a hacker is a person able to exploit a system or gain unauthorized access through skill and tactics. This usually refers to a black hat hacker. There are also white hats (ethical hackers), and grey hats. (See: Hacker (computer security)) In other technical fields, hacker is extended to mean a person who makes things work beyond perceived limits through their own technical skill, such as a hardware hacker, or reality hacker. For some Hacker has a negative connotation and refers to a person who "hacks" or uses kludges to accomplish programming tasks that are ugly, inelegant, and inefficient. The negative form of the noun "hack" is even used among users of the positive sense of "hacker".
Hacking may be defined as, "deliberately gaining unauthorised access to an information system" and, in extreme cases, it may amount to industrial espionage or a national security crime when the defendant accesses commercially or nationally sensitive materials. Under English law, the Computer Misuse Act 1990 creates three offences which reflect the range of seriousness in what may be done. Thus, out of curiosity or a sense of public duty, white hat hackers may identify and exploit security flaws. Although this may represent a threat to commercially or militarily sensitive sites, this form of activity is not necessarily against the public interest and should be distinguished from both nuisance attacks and the more serious, malicious assaults, even though all "victims" may still incur financial "loss" whether through the unexpected cost of having to repair insecure systems, or downtime on a retail portal. The more genuinely criminal can be external threats, i.e. those who wish to break into the systems from outside, or internal in that employees wish to steal from their employers or to place a logic bomb or similar presents when leaving their employment. The cost and inconvenience involved can be substantial. For example, the development of computer viruses such as the "love bug", worms, trojans, etc. represent major threats. Less obvious but no less costly is telephone hacking or "phreaking", i.e. unauthorised access into an organisation's telephone system to make free long-distance calls. Even New Scotland Yard was a victim and lost �1 million when hackers accessed the DISA (Direct Inward System Access) facility on the main PBX (DISA allows teleworkers at home or travelling to call into the corporate telephone system, enter an authorisation code and gain access to system features or make long distance calls).
Hacking frequently involves people acting in different states. Criminal jurisdiction is usually invoked both when the defendant and/or the accessed computer is physically within the territory of the prosecuting state.
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