Hacking vs Cracking

A recent conference in Chennai was thick with talk about data security and how to keep their digital information safe from professional crackers. The term hackers is becoming known for the good guys in the cyber war while crackers are the bad, the conference members agreed the term cracking implies breaking into systems without permission. Statistics say most of the cyber crimes taking place today are emanating from cyber cafes also known as internet cafes. When I owned the First Cyber Cafe in New Orleans I saw signs of this as well, the local 2600 met in my cyber cafe regularly to talk about it. The FBI also liked to hang out and try to get leads on the hacking community. At one point the FBI attempted to hire me as some sort of informant, they approached me at a Computer Trade Show (Louisiana Computer and Electronics [L.A.C.E.]). I told them if I ever heard anything I'd give them a call, as luck would have it I never heard anything. . . Well I never called anyway.

I predicted back then cyber cafes would one day be forced to keep physical records detailing users name's and other information. Talks of this very same thing came up at the conference and I can only see these talks continuing across the continents.

So where does this leave the mom and pop cyber cafes that have sprung up around the US? They too will one day be required by law to register their users in some way in case "The Man" needs to track down a hacker. I wouldn't be surprised to see homeland security a regular buzz word to help perpetuate the user registration movement. Some of the businesses out there, especially big corporates like Starbucks or Kinkos will surely comply forcing all their internet users to swipe their drivers license into a reader and recording as much personal information they can to cover their own cyber butts.

I think some of the smaller cyber cafes in existence will be forced underground. We've all seen the movies where elite underground hacker groups exist, and they are on our side. They'll help you exist in society without the big brother tracking you, oh they will help you alright, for a fee because big brother will be working on technological counter attacks, hacking the hackers to infiltrate and destroy these anti big man establishments. Outlawing anyone with a working knowledge of Unix, making shell a crime?

Ok so maybe that's a little farther down the road but I see it coming. I bet within my lifetime in fact. Which side of the fence will you be sitting on? Will you line up to digital implants and digital tracking in the name of homeland security? Perhaps you are already making plans to go underground, stay hidden from the prying eyes of cyber government.

You can read more about the conference I'm referring to here.