Hackers: Crime and the Digital Sublime [Paperback]

 

 

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Author Paul A. Taylor writes about the issues of security breaching between the hacker and the computer security industry in his book Hackers: Crime in the Digital Sublime. Taylor begins the first half of the book giving the definition of a hacker, walking the reader through the evolution of hacking and describing the Hacking culture. His point being, to look past the stereotypical label of hackers being criminals. Using interviews of well-known hackers, in the hacking community, and elite hackers, Taylor provides his audience with a perspective of the positive moral and ethical values most hackers inhibit. This reinforcement helps balance the arguments between the computer underground (hackers) and the computer security industry.
The issues that Taylor concentrates on are about hackers' intrusion on big business systems opposed to an individual's personal records. The main argument that consistently appears throughout the book is whether hackers who intrude on big business systems should be punished and how society can determine how they should be punished. Although Taylor leans toward the side of the computer underground, he mediates the arguments throughout the book with a balanced amount of interviews from both sides of the argument.
In today's society, Taylor states that cyberspace laws are compared to those that exist in a physical space, the "real world". By providing the point of view of the hacker, Taylor is able to contend that in order to develop a more legitimate law against the intrusion of secured computer systems, society will have to define whether cyberspace is comparable to the real world or if a new set of rules should be developed to aid the regulation of cyberspace.
The way in which Taylor structures his book, Hackers: Crime in the Digital Sublime, is comparable to the structure of the MSNBC news program, Hardball with Chris Matthews. During the show Chris Matthews proposes an issue or argument and brings in specialists from each side to debate it. Taylor follows this structure by interviewing people from the computer underground and people from the computer security industry about where laws should be placed or not be placed in cyberspace. Of course, many books have been written giving both sides of an argument, but what separates Taylor's writing from the rest is how the interviews are separated structurally from Taylor's own opinions. The book reminds me of a TV news program transcription. For instance, the interviews are always separated from Taylor's writing by a line space and indented from the left side by five spaces. This structure gave me the feeling that he was not confident enough in writing his argument in his own words or maybe he did not have that much to say about it. Only half of the 176 pages were actually written in his own words. I was very interested to learn about hackers through the eyes of someone who knows some of them personally and favors their point of view, but given his lack of interpretation on the arguments between the underground and security industry, I find him not very convincing.
It is apparent that Taylor favors the side of the hackers. Although Taylor equally balances the time spent on each viewpoint, he sometimes uses quotes that make the other side, the computer security industry, seem hostile and unintelligent. For example, Taylor argues about how hackers violate laws and professional codes of ethics but he does not believe that hackers are liars, cheaters, or stealers. His reason being that there are no allegations held against them. After stating that all of the hackers he has met seem to be decent people, he then strings five quotes together about how deviant the computer security industry thinks hackers are. For instance, one quote read, "Somewhere near vermin i.e. possibly unavoidable, maybe even necessary pests that can be destructive and disruptive if not mentioned." (107). This quote is taken out of its original context and put into one of which would persuade his audience to believe his opinion. Taylor does not give the information about what kind of argument the person was having when that statement was made. For all we know this could have been a CEO speaking about a hacker who infiltrated the company's system and did so much damage that it to cost the company millions of dollars to repair.
Despite the lack of trust I have for the author, Taylor put together a great understanding of the hacker, the history of hacking, the hacker culture and their motivations. I now denounce the stereotypical negative connotation that the word hacker possesses. The similarities between the book and Hardball would be effective if both parties were given an equal opportunity to share legitimate information about their viewpoint. Unfortunately, since both parties were not presented in the exact space and time like a news show, Taylor is able to edit the information he collected and skew it to benefit his own opinion.

This is the first serious study I have seen of a generally media sensationalised area. Being straight from the hackers' mouths, the source material gives a more balanced view than those given by previous authors who tend to be overly moralistic and prejudiced in their approach to the subject. True impartiality is on display as well as meticulous research. Well done Dr. Taylor. I found the grammatically ludicrous, error strewn review of Mr. Yamane particularly unhelpful and inaccurate. People in grass houses shouldn't throw stones.

Taylor's Hackers is anextended and rigorous analyses of hacking as illicit computer intrusion (or cracking as some insist it should be called. Taylor explores in detail the nature of hacking from every angle. His book is based on over 60 in-depth interviews and is written sympathetically, treating hackers as human rather than as pathological teenagers. It is essential reading for anyone interested in Hackers. There are only two extended, academic pieces on hacking, this book and the complementary statistical analysis by John Howard (available at http://www.cert.org/research/JHThesis/index.html).Hackers also has the advantage of being accessible and well-written. Perhaps the best way to look at this book is as an encyclopaedia of hacking, because it provides extended quotes from hackers, computer security personnel and interested others (journalists, academics, etc.) on all relevant topics. An excellent piece of work.

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2.0 out of 5 stars Not so intellectual...
I enjoyed many quotes of the media hype on hackers, but I do not agree that this book is ``the first major intellectually rigorous study of hacking'' as another reader... Read more

Published on Dec 9 1999 by Shinji Yamane

5.0 out of 5 stars The first major intellectually rigorous study of hacking
Salem revisited

Twenty five years ago when I was starting out in my career as a computer barrister I ran into an elderly Queen's Counsel and got chatting. Read more

Published on Nov 12 1999

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