Even those who might once have believed in them must be wondering now. Today, the Internet generation is worried about the erosion of privacy. The number of people who believe that all information should be freely accessible to resourceful hackers is roughly equivalent to the number of people who believe all doors should be open to those resourceful enough to pick locks. True, many penetration testing services find security glitches and publish them to the companies whose systems may be vulnerable. The idea that hackers must be exceptionally bright or experienced also is largely outmoded.
Many hackers now use simple, Web-downloadable scripts to gain system access.
It's true laws against computer hacking have become stiffer since the '80s, and it's possible those laws deter some home hackers. But as with cigarette smoking, the most important change is not in the law, but in the way society views the practice. It's just not cool anymore.