Hacking for Fun and Profit in China Underworld. The NYT posts this revealing story about a community of hackers who exploit flaws, steal valuable data (mainly, bank accounts) and sell it for profit.

Internet security experts say China has legions of hackers. They are behind an escalating number of global attacks to steal credit card numbers, commit corporate espionage and even wage online warfare. There are independent criminals, and there are shadowy groups who are back by the People's Liberation Army -the so-called patriotic hackers. 

They either use or write viruses and malicious code that allow them to take control of people's computers, while taking care to cover their tracks.
 

The New York Times explains this:

"In China -as in parts of Eastern Europe or Russia- computer hacking has become something of a national sport, and a lucrative one. There are hacker conferences, hacker training academies and magazines with names like Hacker X Files and Hacker Defense, which offer tips on how to break into computers or build a Trojan horse, step by step. 

For less than $6, one can even purchase the "Hacker's Penetration Manual" (Books on hacking are also sold, to a lesser extend, in the United States and elsewhere.)

And with 380 million Web users in China and a sizzling online gaming market, analysts say it is no wonder Chinese youths are so skilled at hacking".