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Software crackers crave a challenge

In some corners of cyberspace they are considered gods, but Australian researchers have found social kudos means little to software crackers.

Instead Australian National University researcher Dr Sigi Goode has discovered the challenge of cracking a software code is everything.

Goode, a business information systems expert from the College of Business and Economics, has done the first study of its kind into what motivates software crackers.

Software crackers specialise in modifying copyright software to remove protection, an illegal activity that Goode learned more about by hopping online.

Cracking differs from the more general term hacking, which can mean everything from a clever fix to a software problem to illegally gaining access to secure networks, depending on the context.

Goode contacted software crackers through advertisements on five cracking forums, which attracted people from the US and Europe.

His research included an online survey and online interviews using Internet Relay Chat (IRC).

Goode says in general software crackers are aged under 25, educated and skilled.

But he was surprised to find that only 25% of his study participants worked in IT with occupations including a cook, students, a software manager and a self-employed small business owner.

Goode says software crackers appear to be motivated by the challenge of cracking software and the harder a piece of software is to crack the more enjoyable the experience.

Celebrity status

But he found that, ironically, the crackers are not supporters of piracy and believe people should pay for software they use.

Although social status is a minor factor in their actions, well-known crackers gain celebrity status.

"Sometimes when ppl [sic] come in to my channels on IRC, they talk to me like I am 'god all mighty [sic]'," one participant told Goode.

While most software crackers acknowledge their actions are illegal, few feel sympathy for companies selling more expensive software products.

He says many respondents suggest companies are already earning a great deal of money and that they are doing the company a favour by introducing people to their software.

Cost of piracy

Goode says the role of the software cracker in the distribution of pirated software is critical as software cannot be pirated while copy protection is in place.

He says in 1999 the business PC application software industry accounted for worldwide revenue of US$21.6 billion.

That same year estimated losses due to software piracy in the business sector were US$12.2 billion alone, Goode says.