Hacking and Hacktivism

Website Defacement

In Website defacement, the goal is to break into the system and upload a new version of the page that has been modified by the hackers. However, there is sometimes more to this effort than simply uploading a new web page. If the hackers gain complete access to the system (or “root”) they may be able to alter user identification codes and passwords such that the page cannot be taken down until the system administrators are able to break into their own system. This prolongs viewer exposure to the modified page. There are varying degrees of sophistication within the hacker community, and this is reflected in Website defacements. Many defacements are simple messages consisting of the hacker's name and a short note or perhaps a graphic. These are often mass defacements, done by simply scanning networks for servers with open ports or looking for unpatched systems. These hackers seem more interested in disseminating their message as widely as possible, with little consideration of the site itself. On the other hand, some defacements are clearly targeted to send a message to the owner of the Website.

Denial-of-Service Attacks and Electronic Sit-Ins

As the name implies, electronic sit-ins are similar to physical sit-ins: Both seek to deny access by occupying space. Rather than occupying space physically, as in a traditional sit-in, electronic sit-ins occupy space in the form of connections and bandwidth. Servers can handle only as many connections as bandwidth allows. When this connection limit is exceeded, others attempting to access material on that server will be denied access until those who are already connected are no longer accessing material. This is why these kinds of actions are called denial-of-service (DOS) or distributed-denial-of-service (DDOS) attacks. Such attacks are simple to implement and require little skill to enact; some groups, such as Electronic Disturbance Theater, have even automated the process. At its most basic level, a DOS attack can be enacted merely by going to a Web page and continually hitting the refresh button. Most servers can handle this kind of action, but if hundreds or thousands of computers do this, even powerful servers may be brought down.

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