Hacking

Hacking provides an introduction to the community of hackers and an analysis of the meaning of hacking in twenty-first century societies. On the one hand, hackers infect the computers of the world, entering where they are not invited, taking over not just individual workstations but whole networks. On the other, hackers write the software that fuels the Internet, from the most popular web programmes to software fundamental to the Internet's existence. Beginning from an analysis of these two main types of hackers, categorised as crackers and Free Software/Open Source respectively, Tim Jordan gives the reader insight into the varied identities of hackers, including: • Hacktivism; hackers and populist politics • Cyberwar; hackers and the nation-state • Digital Proletariat; hacking for the man • Viruses; virtual life on the Internet • Digital Commons; hacking without software • Cypherpunks; encryption and digital security • Nerds and Geeks; hacking cultures or hacking without the hack • Cybercrime; blackest of black hat hacking Hackers end debates over the meaning of technological determinism while recognising that at any one moment we are all always determined by technology. Hackers work constantly within determinations of their actions created by technologies as they also alter software to enable entirely new possibilities for and limits to action in the virtual world. Through this fascinating introduction to the people who create and recreate the digital media of the Internet, students, scholars and general readers will gain new insight into the meaning of technology and society when digital media are hacked.

"Will hackers be the nemesis, or the agents of pro-social innovations of the network society? While stating his affinity to central tenets of the hacker community, Tim Jordan provides a well-grounded analysis that hackers form a core of a social movement shaping the development of information and communication technologies. This book should be read by anyone interested in the social dynamics of hacking, but it will also be an excellent case for research and teaching on social movements." William H. Dutton, University of Oxford "Tim Jordan gives us the most thoughtful, reasoned and thorough analysis of hacking to date. His focus on the meaning of hacking is a refreshing change from the typically celebratory and polemical treatises that seem intended more to leave the reader breathless than informed. Jordan's analysis surveys the entire range of hacking, from free and open source software to hacktivism and cyberterror. He puts hacking in perspective and in context by examining the social, political, cultural and economic dimensions of hacking. Hacking will be as useful a guide to the world of nerds and geeks for a newcomer as it will be to a veteran hacker, a student or a scholar." Steve Jones, University of Illinois at Chicago

Tim Jordan is Lecturer in Sociology at the Open University.