Add to this, the almost infinite number of targets available through the Internet and you can easily see how hacking has almost risen to the degree of being an international crisis. Social engineers approach hacking through persuasion, and rely on the good nature of users and administrators to circumvent controls. While it would seem that with all of the avenues open for technical compromise that social engineering would not be a necessary path for hacking. This technique still proves very useful in particular when access to a specific environment is sought. For general brute force target identification and attack, the traditional technical approach works fine.
Technical hackers exploit common deficiencies in system design, configuration or management.
A common misconception is that a great deal of technical skill is required to compromise a system. This is all part of the hacker mystique. In truth, instructions on how to break into Windows NT systems, Web servers, and Unix systems are widely available on the Internet. Many of the tools have been combined on special CDs for ease of use. For instance, a two CD set called Hackers Gold contains a comprehensive array of some 30,000 hacking tools and utilities collected from around the world.