Name of Site: Hactivismo
URL: www.hacktivismo.com
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Review: It seems that lately the world has become a very strange place, the Great wall of China has been replaced by an immense National Firewall, the record industry is strong-arming ordinary net users for file sharing through lawsuits totalling in the millions and state governments across the US are attempting to black out whole parts of the web. Formed by the infamous cult of the cead cow (cDc), Hactivismo is a 'special operations' group dedicated to keeping the internet free from state sponsored censorship and corporate chicanery. For once this is a group who's actually doing something! Their latest project has been developing a military-grade encrypted peer to peer file sharing protocol designed to help people in countries where censorship is heavy, get access to the information they choose. Should you get involved? Only if you value your freedom! - SS
Name of Site: ThinkGeek
URL: www.thinkgeek.com
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Review: As we all know, hackers are really just geeks with a lot more spare time. If you're a member of this elite subset of the ever increasingly smart masses, then you'll be happy to know that there is a shop that caters solely to you and your kind. With ripping PC Mods, nifty books, caffeinated products, plenty of electronics and lots of dweeb-tastic fashion, this site will bring out the nerd in even the most hardened luddite. So now you too can loudly proclaim who you are with a loud, resounding "ALL YOUR BASE ARE BELONG TO US!" - SS
Name of Site: NETSYS - The Intelligent Hacker's Choice
URL: www.netsys.com
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Review: If you're a fan of such standard Hollywood fare as 2001's 'Swordfish', you may be under the severely misguided impression that hacking is all fast cars and loose women. Without meaning to offend you hackers out there, let's face it, hacking is no blockbuster movie script. Prepare yourselves for long nights in front of command line interfaces, trawling through bucket loads of decidedly uninteresting information searching for flaws, vulnerabilities and holes in the latest Micro release. If this is your idea of fun, then NETSYS is the website for you. A constant stream of news about the latest security issues, archives of useful information, netÂworking tools, events and plenty more - there's enough information here to obliterate your Halle Berry topless desktop wallpaper forever. - SS
Name of Site: DEFCON
URL: www.defcon.org
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Review: The DEFCON conferences are described by their promotional material as being "on the order of a pilgrimage to Mecca for the underground ...a mind-blowing orgy of information exchange, viewpoints, speeches, education, enlightenment... and most of all sheer, unchecked PARTYING". If the thought of hundreds of horn-rimmed spectacle-wearing dweebs with name-tags like 'the firewall fondler' and 'D4rk T4||genT' has you quivering with anticipation, then tuck your shirt into your underpants, grab your spare mouse, tell your mother you're not to be disturbed and log on to the closest thing you'll ever get to a real orgy. Click on for archives, mailing lists, forums, books, media releases - you're in hacker heaven. - SS
Name of Site: White Hat - Black Hat - Gray Hat - WBG Links
URL: www.wbglinks.net
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Review: WBG Links is the sort of page that stands a decent chance of making it to be your homepage. It's got fresh news everyday from the hacker world, including security problems, lawsuits against Microsoft, the plight of female hackers and whatever else is hot at the moment. On top of this it has a fantastic array of links to sites about hacking, security, Unix, Linux, news, Music and the Open Source community. If that wasn't enough, WBG also provides its "good reads" section, with a heap of fascinating articles guaranteed to suck up your time faster than a special edition Matrix trilogy DVD. - SS
Name of Site: CyberCrime
URL: www.cybercrime.gov
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Review: So you want to be an outlaw and you can't afford a Harley? Try hacking, but before you do you might like to pay attention to what's happening in the land of cybercrime prosecution. This site, maintained by the U.S. Department of Justice, gives you the low-down on policy, cases, laws and guidance on computer, intellectual property and cyber crime. The information is a mixture of compelling (morbid curiosity for case studies of those unfortunate enough to get caught) and mind-numbingly boring (masses of legalese about laws which only apply in the US) but overall very informative and definitely something to motivate the budding cybercriminal to get a day job. - SS
Name of Site: Phrack
URL: www.phrack.org
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Review: Claimed to be a 'Hacker magazine by the community for the community', Phrack lives up to its name, providing a magazine definitely not for the faint-hearted. Now up to its 61st issue, spanning almost 20 years of publication, Phrack publishes DIY articles and papers about security, hacking, phreaking, anarchy, cryptography, spying, coding, conspiracy and more. The level of expertise and understanding required is pretty high though, and most of the magazine is not for newbies. I browsed around for a good hour or so, and I didn't understand a word of what was said! Which brings me to the inescapable conclusion that for hard core hackers, this is the magazine to read. - SS
Name of Site: [thc]
URL: www.thc.org
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Review: When I typed in the URL for this particular website I must admit I was expecting to be greeted by a large green leaf, but this is no weed site, nor is it the home of the Texas Historical Commission (your next assumption, I'm sure). In fact THC stands for The Hacker's Choice and is a German group of people involved in "hacking, phreaking and anarchy". With the intention of demonstrating weaknesses in common security solutions, THC publishes software and papers by its members, maintains a forum of discussion on the aforementioned topics and provides lots of photos of it's Aryan-esque members at 'phun' hacker parties. Ahh the joys of teen angst! - SS
Name of Site: The Jargon File - The New Hacker's Dictionary
URL: info.astrian.net/jargon
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Review: Whether you like it or not, jargon pervades everything that has to do with computers. This means that if you want to be a hacker, you're going to have to learn to 5p34k like them to gain their acceptance - either that or pull off a daring hack on the Pentagon file systems, leaving your calling card behind for all to know... OK so you're probably going to take the former option, in which case you'll need the Jargon file. With a pronunciation guide, jargon construction tutorials, articles on 'Hacker Writing Style' and of course the massive dictionary, you'll soon be speaking so l33t your words alone will be busting you through firewalls and disabling networks the world over. - SS
Name of Site: Hackers.com
URL: www.hackers.com
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Review: When you think Hackers, you undoubtedly think mischief, cybercrime and people with absurdly grandiose sounding names. Hackers.com would have you believe that in reality at least two out of these three are not what hacking is really about. Founded by a hacker named 'Revelation' and his crew the 'Legion of the Apocalypse' (need I say more) this site is dedicated to teaching the world the little understood yet thoroughly altruistic ethics of the hacker - that there is power in knowledge. And with over 600,000 users monthly and growing, you better pray they don't decide that they were wrong about the other two! - SS
Name of Site: 2600: The Hacker Quarterly
URL: www.2600.com
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Review: The premise of this long standing Hacker-zine seems to be that if you can understand their website, you could probably hack into the FBI's most wanted database to replace Osama's head with your own! Having been around since 1984, 2600 has quite a lot to say, with a massive news archive, info on famous hacker cases, write-ups of hacker conferences and even some parodies of Micro and Amazon.com. Just remember to watch your back for the Secret Service... - SS
Name of Site: The Happy Hacker
URL: www.happyhacker.org
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Review: The Happy hacker is the site to go to if you want to get started with hacking. Run by an author and a group of other people with real jobs, it takes a fairly straightforward approach to getting you involved, since as the author says, breaking into most people's computers is so easy a little kid can do it. With tutorials on how to set up your own hacker laboratory, guides to (mostly) harmless hacking, info on how to 'legally' snoop on your husband/wife/girlfriend/boyfriend, and even a "how to commit computer crime" section, you may find that before long you will need to read the section on what to do when you get busted! - SS
Name of Site: Hackology
URL: www.hackology.com
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Review: While a true hacker might write his or her own software, the budding newbie can take advantage of the work of others. The owners of Hackology claim to be only programmers and not hackers themselves, although they admit to being "controversial" programmers... and with readily downloadable software like 'Hard Drive Killer Pro' and 'HTTP Brute Forcer' it's easy to see how they've earned their reputation. However all these pale in comparison to the software they are working on currently - codenamed Black Angel, it promises the ability to control anyone, anytime, anywhere. Scared? You should be. - SS
Name of Site: AntiOnline
URL: www.antionline.com/index.php
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Review: Antionline is the 'Fight-Back!' website against malicious hackers and crackers. With so many sites dedicated to breaking open computers, AntiOnline aims to get you knowledgable and protected. Follow the seven steps to bump your security, learn the hacker jargon, board up the security holes in your computer and if you're a teacher there's even tips on how to stop kids taking your mouseballs! So log on, read up, get involved in the discussion boards and take control! - SS
Name of Site: TinHat: Humans versus Computers
URL: www.tinhat.com
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Review: As the Internet takes over more and more of our lives, people should be aware of their personalities spreading electonically. It's down to us as individuals if we want to take any kind of control over our privacy. Tinhat explains in simple language everything from cookies to viruses, how to keep hackers out of your computer and how to avoid spam. It's a common-sense approach to feeling more secure online and maintaining your privacy. So forget your black hat or white hat - strap on your helmet, because it's trench warfare out there! - SS
Name of Site: Cult of the Dead Cow
URL: www.cultdeadcow.com
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Review: It must be something to do with all those late nights and caffeinated drinks, but hackers always love to associate themselves with gross imagery. Rotting carcasses aside, these dudes have established themselves as a global force, combining supreme technical prowess with political activism. Their "Hactivismo" subsite details the very creative ways they are using the Web and its emerging global democracy to subvert governments and human rights abusers. The Weblog reveals the high level of inclusion the cult encourages and the rollicking and raunchy culture the "cow" inspires. All this while they skull Jolt Cola and hack away til the cows come home. - SS
Name of Site: Nethersearch Underground
URL: www.nethersearch.com
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Review: This "mainstream guide to the Web's back alleys" has been set up to allow the more naive surfers to begin to get a grip on the kinds of special powers the gurus have long mastered. Demystification is the name of the game, with plenty of revealing articles and tutorials, news announcements and advisories to keep you safe. Hopefully once you have downloaded a few files, patched up all your vulnerabilities and cracked a few passwords, you will only use your powers for good, not evil. It's reassuring that the demigods of doom are finally coming out of the dark. The threat of long prison terms tends to do that to a person. - SS
Name of Site: Attrition.org
URL: www.attrition.org
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Review: The amount of design put into a hacking site must be in inverse proportion to the hacking prowess of its owners. Long live the text link! Actually this is all you need when you are getting the goods from the veterans of the field. If you hunt around you will find an endless array of downloadable files, security alerts, humour, culture, politics and general spoutings from a team of dedicated non-idealists wrestling with their own love-hate relationship with technology and inviting you to join the party. From what I can gather, it's one hell of a hackfest. - SS
Name of Site: Hacking Files
URL: cleo-and-nacho.com/mainpages/hacking.html
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Review: Handing over hacking powers to the general population is like handing out briefcase A-bombs at the busstop. These guys reveal all the secrets, the tricks of the trade and the tools that threaten to take down civilization as we know it. It's all in the name of security - the more informed you are, the safer you'll be - but how can you trust yourself now that you have these new-found powers? Everything is here, from viruses to password crackers and hacking how-tos. They have even made the site look like a hacked Yahoo! page. It's all in good fun and very educational - just try to stay out of jail, please. - SS
Name of Site: The New Hacker's Dictionary
URL: www.hack.gr/jargon
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Review: If ever you need evidence that hackers are a breed to their own, you only need to realise that they have created their own dictionary. If it wasn't bad enough that computers themselves have spawned about a million new words and acronyms, now we have the practical application of said computers by dubious operators redefining the spoken word once again. You may never get around to learning the entire lexicography presented here, but a few hours reading the definitions and humorously presented explainations will certainly have you chortling away, while the dictionary's creators casually browse your hard-drive for credit card numbers. - SS
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