caloric content (humans or flies, either one of them are always looking for food).

In the virtual world of computers, a honeypot also attracts determined individuals. How? A network honeypot is a place that poses as something it isn't: a network site that is easy to hack by an intruder.

Actually, it is a trap for any hacker trying to get inside. Although it may seem that it is part of the main network, in reality it is separated from it. The hacker may see from outside that the honeypot is the door he was looking for. Easy to force, and full of information that could mean huge chunks of money, he assumes an oversight of the system administrator and decides to use it.

Of course, a honeypot isn't something simple to use and can become a sword of two edges. If it isn't adequately managed, an expert hacker could use it for really accessing the network the honeypot was supposed to guard and protect.

Besides trapping hackers, honeypots have become a versatile tool for detecting spammers. Since spammers abuse the existence of open email relays (an email server that permits anyone in the internet to send mails through it) and open proxies (a computer that permits access to a network through the internet), it is the perfect instrument for catching them.

Another tool against hackers is the Robot Exclusion Standard. Created in 1994, this convention accorded the use of the file robots.txt. This file contains those sections of the webpage that the administrator doesn't wish to be accessed from outside. That way, companies can protect their intellectual property without the fear of being Google hacked.

Although hacking should not be a negative word, it has acquired that meaning within the popular culture, thanks to movies, the media and books. Hacking should be the art through which a user can exploit the capacities of any electronic device beyond the intentions of it's manufacturer. Unfortunately, people think of hackers as people who spend their days and nights intruding inside other's computers and stealing money from their credit cards. Even something as innocent as Google Earth hacks could cause a shudder in the common man of the street. Imagine what devious schemes could a hacker create by hacking Google Earth! But forget about those misconceptions. Hacking is an art, and if you wish to protect yourself from it, you need to master it. So start from the basics, learn the tools of the black hackers and start some Google hacking of your own.