The Artful Cyberdodger

In scenarios reminiscent of Oliver Twist, it seems you can pick up your Hackers Kit down the local market now, reports the BBC:

On sale, say security experts, are everything from individual viruses to comprehensive kits that let budding cyber thieves craft their own attacks. The top hacking tools are being offered for prices ranging up to £500. Some of the most expensive tools are sold with 12 months of technical support that ensures they stay armed with the latest vulnerabilities.

This is the dark side of the same trend that ensures that any restrictive DRM or protection will get cracked in a very short time. Additional reasons, if any were needed, to be careful with your Net Identity. This is not a game, despite what the purveyors of social media to the masses might want you to believe.

Paul Henry, vice president of technology evangelism at Secure Computing, said the numbers of downloadable hacking tools was growing fast.

According to Mr Henry there were more than 68,000 downloadable hacking tools in circulation. The majority were free to use and took some skill to operate but a growing number were offered for sale to those without the technical knowledge to run their own attacks, he said.

But, he added, many hacking groups were offering tools such as Mpack, Shark 2, Nuclear, WebAttacker, and IcePack that made it much easier for unskilled people to get in to the hi-tech crime game.

This is the emerging reality - hacking will no longer be an exotic sport, it will be the pursuit of every kid with a computer and wish to pick a pocket or two.

Must run now...have a few things I want to download.....