Hacker (computer security)

In the computer security context, a hacker is someone who seeks and exploits weaknesses in a computer system or computer network. Hackers may be motivated by a multitude of reasons, such as profit, protest, challenge, enjoyment, or to evaluate those weaknesses to assist in removing them. The subculture that has evolved around hackers is often referred to as the computer underground and is now a known community. While other uses of the word hacker exist that are not related to computer security, such as referring to someone with an advanced understanding of computers and computer networks, they are rarely used in mainstream context. They are subject to the longstanding hacker definition controversy about the term's true meaning. In this controversy, the term hacker is reclaimed by computer programmers who argue that someone who breaks into computers, whether computer criminal (black hats) or computer security expert (white hats), is more appropriately called a cracker instead. Some white hat hackers claim that they also deserve the title hacker, and that only black hats should be called "crackers".

Black hat

A black hat hacker is a hacker who "violates computer security for little reason beyond maliciousness or for personal gain." Black hat hackers form the stereotypical, illegal hacking groups often portrayed in popular culture, and are "the epitome of all that the public fears in a computer criminal". Black hat hackers break into secure networks to destroy, modify, or steal data; or to make the network unusable for those who are authorized to use the network. Black hat hackers are also referred to as the "crackers" within the security industry and by modern programmers. Crackers keep the awareness of the vulnerabilities to themselves and do not notify the general public or the manufacturer for patches to be applied. Individual freedom and accessibility is promoted over privacy and security. Once they have gained control over a system, they may apply patches or fixes to the system only to keep their reigning control.

Richard Stallman invented the definition to express the maliciousness of a criminal hacker versus a white hat hacker who performs hacking duties to identify places to repair.

Haredi Judaism

Haredi Judaism (Hebrew: חֲרֵדִי Ḥaredi, IPA: [χaʁeˈdi]; also spelled Charedi, plural Charedim) is a stream of Orthodox Judaism characterized by rejection of modern secular culture. Its members are often referred to as strictly Orthodox or ultra-Orthodox in English. The term "ultra-Orthodox," however, is considered a derogatory slur by some in the community. Haredim regard themselves as the most religiously authentic group of Jews, although this claim is contested by other streams.

Haredi Judaism emerged in response to the sweeping changes brought upon the Jews in the modern era: emancipation, Enlightenment and the Haskalah movement derived from it, acculturation, secularization, religious Reform in all its forms, Jewish nationalism, etc. In contrast to Modern Orthodox Judaism, which hastened to embrace modernity, the approach of the Haredim was to maintain a steadfast adherence to Jewish religious law by segregating itself from modern society. However, there are Haredi communities in which getting a professional degree and a trade is encouraged and contact exists between Haredi and non-Haredi Jews.

Blackhat (film)

Blackhat is a 2015 American action thriller mystery film co-written, co-produced and directed by Michael Mann. The film stars Chris Hemsworth, Tang Wei, Viola Davis, Holt McCallany, and Wang Leehom. The film premiered at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles on January 8, 2015, and was released in theaters on January 16.Blackhat was a box office bomb, earning only $19.7 million at the box office against a budget of $70 million. While the film received generally mixed-to-negative reviews, with criticisms focused on casting and a plodding pace, some critics found brilliance in the film, enough to place the film in some critics' year-end lists.

Plot

At a nuclear plant in Chai Wan, Hong Kong, a hacker causes the coolant pumps to overheat and explode. Not long after in Chicago, the Mercantile Trade Exchange gets hacked, causing soy futures to rise. The Chinese government and the FBI determine that the hack was caused by a Remote Access Tool (RAT). A military officer in China's cyber warfare unit, Captain Chen Dawai (Leehom Wang), is tasked to find the people responsible for the attacks, and enlists the aid of his sister Chen Lien (Tang Wei), a networking engineer. He meets with FBI Agent Carol Barrett (Viola Davis) in Los Angeles and reveals the code in the RAT was written by himself and Nicholas Hathaway (Chris Hemsworth), his college roommate, in their school days, years before Hathaway was sent to prison for an unrelated hack. Dawai asks that the FBI arrange for Hathaway to be released from prison, where he is serving a sentence for computer crimes. Hathaway is offered temporary release in exchange for his services.

Priest (2011 film)

Priest is a 2011 American post-apocalyptic dystopian sci-fi action/horror film starring Paul Bettany as the title character. The film, directed by Scott Stewart, is loosely based on the Korean comic of the same name. In an alternate world, humanity and vampires have warred for centuries. After the last Vampire War, a veteran Warrior Priest (Bettany) lives in obscurity with other humans inside one of the Church's walled cities. When the Priest's niece (Lily Collins) is kidnapped by vampires, the Priest breaks his vows to hunt them down. He is accompanied by the niece's boyfriend Hicks (Cam Gigandet), who is a wasteland sheriff, and a former Warrior Priestess (Maggie Q).

The film first entered development in 2005, when Screen Gems bought the spec script by Cory Goodman. In 2006 Andrew Douglas was attached to direct and Gerard Butler was attached to star. They were eventually replaced by Stewart and Bettany in 2009 and filming started in Los Angeles, California, later in the year. The film changed release dates numerous times throughout 2010 and 2011. It was especially pushed back from 2010 to 2011 to convert the film from 2D to 3D. It was released in the United States and Canada on May 13, 2011. The film earned over $78 million at the box office against a $60 million production budget, but it was panned by critics, who, while noting the film's visual style, criticized the movie's use of genre clichés.