Teen rebels turn to hacking

Almost two-thirds of hackers began hacking before they turned 16, the report added. Photo / 123RF

Teenagers used to rebel by smoking, doing drugs and getting pregnant. But in Britain, modern 14-year-olds are eschewing these traditional forms of acting out - in favour of hacking computers from their bedrooms.

Figures from a study carried out by University College London suggest that more teens of this age have hacked a computer than have had sex or are regular smokers.

One in 20 teenagers in the Millennium Cohort Study, which follows children as they grow up and asks them questions about their lives, told researchers they had hacked a computer in the past year. Just under 1 per cent had sent a virus.

Two per cent of 14-year-olds of either gender said they had had sexual intercourse, with almost 11 per cent telling researchers they had had some kind of intimate sexual contact.

Three per cent said they were regular smokers.

Less than 3 per cent had done graffiti without permission and 4 per cent had been involved in vandalism. About 2 per cent said they were part of a gang.

Just 4 per cent said they had shoplifted in the last 12 months, and just 1 per cent said they had stolen something from another person.

Last year a report from the National Crime Agency said that the average age of suspects involved in National Cyber Crime Unit investigations was 17 years old - 20 years younger than those involved in drugs cases or economic crime cases.

Almost two-thirds of hackers began hacking before they turned 16, the report added.