The virtues of the Internet became its vices last month

The speed and power of digital communication was turned against Internet users early in May when a hacker unleashed an email-based computer virus that crippled millions of machines in 20 countries around the world, including Hong Kong and China.

The virus came in a devilishly named e-mail attachment -- "I Love You" -- and within a few days, variants of it were released to do their own damage to many more thousands of computers in Hong Kong and elsewhere.

The attacks illustrate how vulnerable the networked world is to digital crime. They underline the need in Hong Kong and elsewhere to develop security systems to counteract viruses and the "hackers" who design them.

In Hong Kong, hackers are fueling a sharp increase in computer crime. For the first three months, the number of hacking incidents is 16 times higher than it was in the same period last year. And for all of last year, 238 of the 317 reported computer-crime cases involved hacking. In one case last year, two hackers even tried to infiltrate the home page of the SAR government website. They failed, but the effort shows the potential for trouble in important corners of the digital world.

With 30,000 websites and 1.7 million computer users in Hong Kong, law enforcement may have a hard time keeping pace if the rate of computer crime keeps increasing. The Security Council, Information Technology and Broadcasting Council, Judicial Secretary and ICAC have formed a task force to examine the issues. Its first report is due this summer.

In April, three Hong Kong teenagers were convicted in court of 49 charges, including stealing data and downloading music for illegal profit. It was the first time in Hong Kong that teenagers faced trial for computer-related offences. One of the offenders, a 19-year-old boy, was jailed for six months. The other two were sentenced to a detention center.

The judge said in court that it was difficult to impose such punishment, yet it was necessary to set an example. Eastern Court magistrate Ian Candy described the three as "talented and highly intelligent in computer skills." However, he said they had caused "great damage and loss to society and the economy" and that their crimes had alarmed legitimate Internet users.

"The court must give a clear message that these offences must be given a deterrent sentence," he said, according to the South China Morning Post.

That same month, the Straits Times reported a similar case in Singapore. There, another teenager was sentenced to jail for ten months for hacking into the Television Corporation of Singapore, shutting the site down for ten hours.

In ordering the 18-year-old teenager jailed, the city-state's Justice Yong Pung How said, "There is so much nonsense about how clever they are. The cleverer they are, the more severe their punishment will be."

While some regard hackers as a threat, others think they are a manageable problem. Dr. Douglas Thomas, a U.S. scholar and author of "Hacking Culture", said most hackers are not after money. They just want to embarrass the big organizations like Yahoo, eBay, Amazon.com, ZDNet, etc. They are in fact "crackers", and what they do should not even be categorized as crime.

Professor James Westland, director of Information System Management of University of Science and Technology of Hong Kong, adds, "One point you have to know about these high-profile people, they are not that good. The best criminals are never caught."

The motives of hackers vary from case to case. Ray Cheng, a computer consultant recently involved in a highly publicized sexual harassment lawsuit, was found guilty in 1995 of illegally entering his company's computer system by using the nickname "Buster Bunny". During the sexual harassment trial, he said in court that it was "fun" to log onto others' computers.

"Hacking is a very addictive hobby, or past time, whatever, you want to call it," Mr. Cheng said.

In the case featuring the first jailed Hong Kong hacker, the offender's lawyer said that the teenager suffered asthma and a skin disease, which had isolated him from his classmates, resulting in increasing low esteem. He became a computer hacker to find "satisfaction and achievement", the lawyer said.

Hackers vary in age, but most Hong Kong hacking cases do involve teens, according to the senior superintendent of the Crime Prevention Unit, Computer Crime Bureau.

Whether against hackers, crackers or determined cyber terrorists, the police need to arm themselves with new investigative skills and the best technology, most experts say.

"In a crime scene, we look for dead body, and find evidence from something physical. Now, we refer to analyzing the computer system," said Paul Jackson, senior Superintendent of Crime Prevention Unit.

This unit was formed in 1995, with two staff to manage all computer crime prevention activities, such as giving lectures to computer companies and schools.

"A large percentage of computer crime is committed by adolescents, age 16 to 21, sometimes 13 and 14," said Mr. Jackson. "Some kids think it's challenging to break into a computer's system. They have respect on hackers. I would try to twist it to reality and say something like, 'Would you respect shoplifters?' In fact, it's very common in Hong Kong to hack into an e-mail account. Kids think it's clever."

When facing kids, Mr. Jackson frequently faces master users of software who are already good at hacking techniques. But Mr. Jackson tries to reach their heart.

"One of the students asks me, 'What happens if I hack into a company and asked the boss to give me the job? I can help you to protect your system.' I would say, 'They won't give you a job if you have broken the law and hacked into their system. Why should they trust a person with a criminal mind?'"

Mr. Jackson has allowed some adolescents to personallt demonstrate their hacking skills for him.

"I asked the kid to demonstrate for me, using two computers next to each other. It is done in a controlled environment, with my permission."

He has kept in contact with a few he considers experts. "When a good kid is willing to talk to me, why discourage him? I say to them: 'In the future, you can become a computer security professional if you channel your effort into the right direction.'"

The Crime Prevention Bureau has made visits to more than 20 organizations, including schools, during the first four months of this year; only 23 visits were made in all of last year, reflecting increasing demand for Internet prevention measures.

In recent talks, Jackson reminded company bosses to be aware of the staff they sacked.

"Many hackers come from within companies. One problem is the disgruntled employees. When they get fired, they may take revenge. We recommend to companies that when you fire an employee, don't give them notice and immediately cancel their computer access."