Threat
Bill Gardner Marshall University, Huntington, WV, USA
Abstract
Online attackers are motivated by a number of factors. Most are seeking to steal money or protected online information such as credit card numbers or intellectual property that can be used to make money. Other motivations are rooted in political protest in the case of hacktivism or rooted in furthering the interests of nation-states as the case of cyber war. The granddaddy of all motivations is bragging rights. Showing off your technical prowess and your advanced technical ability has long been held in high esteem in the digital underground.
Keywords
Motivation of attackers
Money
Hacktivism
Bragging rights
Cyber war
The Motivations of Online Attackers
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