Matthew Burd

2/10/25

Review the articles linked with each individual motive in the presentation page or Slide #4.  Rank the motives from 1 to 7 as the motives that you think make the most sense (being 1) to the least sense (being 7).  Explain why you rank each motive the way you rank it.

Since financial gain is the most common and practical motivation for cybercrime, I put “for money” as the top incentive. “Political” comes next since attacks with political motivations are becoming more common in the modern world. “Revenge” follows, motivated by personal grudges and frequently observed in cases of revenge porn or cyberstalking. Since some people are driven by a desire for notoriety or prestige in hacker communities, “Recognition” comes in at number four. Some hackers find thrills or challenges in conducting crimes, and “entertainment” is listed sixth. “Boredom” ranks sixth because it is a less reliable incentive, particularly for younger people. Lastly, because it is less clear than other, more specific explanations, “multiple reasons” is listed last.