Hacking: The Art of Exploitation, 2nd Edition

Chapter 0x800. CONCLUSION

Hacking tends to be a misunderstood topic, and the media likes to sensationalize, which only exacerbates this condition. Changes in terminology have been mostly ineffective—what's needed is a change in mind-set. Hackers are just people with innovative spirits and an in-depth knowledge of technology. Hackers aren't necessarily criminals, though as long as crime has the potential to pay, there will always be some criminals who are hackers. There's nothing wrong with the hacker knowledge itself, despite its potential applications.

Like it or not, vulnerabilities exist in the software and networks that the world depends on from day to day. It's simply an inevitable result of the fast pace of software development. New software ...