Both methods rely on guessing password and username combinations - and while they’re not the most sophisticated, they’re fairly successful at unlocking admin privileges. The researchers discovered that a majority of these attacks use dictionary scripts and brute force to gain access to a PC. This means that your device may be attacked over 2,200 times in one day. The history of hacking records the first data breach to have taken place in 2005, when hackers broke into DSW and leaked over 1 million sensitive customer records, delivering one of the biggest hacks in history.Ī study conducted by the University of Maryland revealed that personal computers and devices experience a hacking attempt every 39 seconds. While databases have been around for hundreds (if not thousands) of years in one shape or another, the digitalization of data makes it easier for thieves to steal user files. This went on for days, tricking hundreds of people into compromising their identity.įinally, we get to data breaches - the bane of modern companies that handle online databases. Hackers posed as company employees in messages and emails, convincing users to disclose account credentials. Phishing scams go back as far as 1994, when AOHell wrecked havoc among AOL users. This type of hacking later earned its own nickname: “phreaking”.įrom there, hacking branched out into multiple avenues, including the now-so-prominent, phishing.
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This let John make free phone calls whenever he wanted. When blown, the whistle created a 2600 Hz tone, which is the perfect frequency to disconnect one end of an AT&T line and place the other one on hold. John Draper (aka Captain Crunch) was a Vietnam Veteran who put a toy whistle in a cereal box. The very same year saw the first major “hacker” emerge. When successful, the creeper displayed a simple message on-screen to taunt computer users: “I’M THE CREEPER CATCH ME IF YOU CAN!” Developed by Bob Thomas of BBM, the experimental program was designed to taunt users on the ARPANET network. Ten years later, the first computer virus - named “the creeper” - was born. This incident served as the origin of the term “hacker”, which was later described as a highly skilled individual practicing hardcore computer programming.
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That team later moved on to computer hacking to improve what they could accomplish by implementing a series of clever shortcuts. The MIT’s Tech Model Railroad Club “hacked” its toy train sets to alter how they work. When the first hack occurred in 1961, it wasn’t known as that - and it had little to do with actual computers. That’s right, as long as computers have been around, people have been busy trying to figure out how best to exploit them. Hacking is almost as old as the very first computer network. To fully understand cybersecurity and hacking, let’s take a look at how hacking started, the most important moments in history of hacking, target data, and the current state of data breaches. Now that you know the two main keywords, let’s take a look at other important cybersecurity and hacking-related definitions. On the other hand, hacking is the process of gaining unauthorized access to a system or device’s data. It also outlines the necessary measures needed to achieve this protection. Before we get into our long list of cybersecurity/hacking stats, let us first go over some key definitions.Ĭybersecurity is the protection of device users and contents against unauthorized access of electronic data and bad actors. Jump to a section below, or read on: Cybersecurity Glossary General Statistics Hacking 101 Cybersecurity GlossaryĬybersecurity is a complicated subject with its fair share of technical jargon. Let’s start by taking a look at the basics: some key definitions you’ll need along the way.
We’ll finish off with the future of cybersecurity and provide tips to stay safe online. We’ll also go over stats on the biggest threats, vulnerabilities, and risk areas you might be subject to. In this Hacking the World series, we’ll cover everything you need to know about the history of hacking, as well as the scale, cost, and geography of cyberattacks and data breaches. That’s how Hollywood presents them to us - but how close to the truth is it? With the rise in cybersecurity concerns, it’s important to know the ins and outs of the hacking world and how it came to be. The word hacker brings up images of hooded people sitting in a basement, banging on the keyboard, trying to break into the systems of various organizations. As part of Cybersecurity Awareness Month, we published a four-part series packed with facts and stats, to give you an in-depth look at the state of cybersecurity in today’s world.