<p>Lol dontno. I might not know much C++ but I’ve been learning about computer security for quite a few years now and let me tell you CANNOT hack without knowing programming. You’ll need to learn C/C++/Perl (scripts for hacking are generally written in C/Perl and a few are in C++). There are tons of scripts available on the Internet that enable you to exploit a vulnerability in a server and gain access, however these scripts will typically have an error, like a symbol missing or something, to prevent random idiots from using it.</p>
<p>Those who do use these scripts are refered to as script-kiddies. You do not want to be a script kiddie. You know the news stories where hackers get arrested (typically teenagers) because they tried to break into a secured website? They’re generally script-kiddies. They execute a script and hope for the best. These scripts do not allow you to cover your tracks (you’ll have to run a separate script for that and that increases the complications) among other things.</p>
<p>Here I’ll make a distinction between hackers and crackers. Back in the old days hackers used to roam through telephone lines to explore connections and meet strangers. That used to be hacking. Then as they started becoming more selfish and greedy they started using their abilities for profit, and that gave rise to what you would now call cracking. Cracking also refers to defacing web pages and other malicious activity. Nowadays hackers (the ones who like to explore, not deface) insist on the distinction between being a hacker and a cracker, but personally I don’t much care. For me, a hacker = a cracker.</p>
<p>So. You want to learn to hack. Let me first warn you that it is VERY easy to get caught. You know the trinity of hacker emotions? They’re fear, uncertainty, and doubt. Will you be able to cope up with these feelings when you break into a computer? Will you be able to sleep at night not knowing for sure if you covered up your tracks when you broke into that server? I don’t know.</p>
<p>So, start off by learning programming languages. Choose either C/C++ (C++ is an industry standard, however C is more commonly used for scripts) and learn Perl too. Then learn PHP. That’ll allow you to take advantage of the numerous security holes in PHP. After that you’ll want to learn about networks, firewall, and how the Internet works. Concentrate on learning about IPs, the different types of packets and their functions, etc. It’s a long haul… you can’t become a hacker overnight. It’ll take years to achieve competency.</p>
<p>About viruses. Viruses can be programmed in any programming language (though Python will give you a lot of trouble. Took me ages to make a .exe file with Python o_o )
Assembly will typically give you the most powerful viruses, with most boot-sector viruses being programmed in Assembly. C++ isn’t too bad also but you’ll need extremely advanced knowledge of C++ to do anything of that sort. I’d recommend you stay away from this area.</p>
<p>The question you’ve asked is so very vast that I could write for hours and still not say it all so you’ll have to do your own research. The gist of it all is, learn programming first. Everything will follow afterwards.</p>
<p>Now, back to the discussion.
Dr.Horse: You can’t argue over competency. Always asssume that the person learning the language has never programmed before. That’s the point of high-level languages anyway. To be as close to real sentence commands as possible. Python is a much better language because it has less scope for mistakes, and is in general much more readable, clean, and “sentence-like”. Compare that to Perl or C++.</p>