Re: 'Hacker' is too cutesy a word to describe what's really going on

[InfoSec News <isn () c4i org>]

Forwarded from: Robert G. Ferrell <rferrell () texas net>

At 03:37 AM 10/7/02 -0500, InfoSec News wrote:

> A "hacker" isn't a cute character; he is a felon. Perpetrators often
> justify their actions by saying something to the effect that, "If
> someone can get into the computer it isn't secure. If the companies
> made their systems secure, I wouldn't be able to get in. I can get
> in, so it's the company's fault for not making it secure."

What worries me about this article is that even though this person
advocates clarity of expression, he never actually comes right out and
says that the word "hacker" is inappropriate in the contexts he is
examining.  Instead, he includes the above paragraph, which seems to
equate all hacking with felonious behavior.  This is, of course, utter
nonsense, and perpetuates exactly the sort of misinformation the
author seems to be decrying.

And as for the statements that the term "hacker" is "frivolous" and
"light-hearted," it can be argued that whoever killed Lizzie Borden's
parents was a "hacker," and there was nothing frivolous or
light-hearted about those grisly actions.

Finally, let us not forget that the term "hacker" was applied to
sloppy journalists and authors of the trite long before the digital
computer age came along.

Context is everything, isn't it?

RGF

Robert G. Ferrell
rferrell () texas net
http://rferrell.home.texas.net/rgflit.html 



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