Whats the point of computer viruses?

Besides spyware and identity theft, whats the point of ruining a complete strangers computer? I don't get the pleasure some people get from doing it. I could understand if you could actually watch someone's frustration but you can't. Do they get some kind of underground fame?

Whats the point of computer viruses?panda

The hacker culture is very much like the entertainment field: a full sea of wannabes, all aspiring for the mark of fame. Wannabe ''black hat'' hackers want to be the one who puts the ''superstar virus'' on the map, snag the world-wide news coverage, gain the quiet satisfaction of being the creator of the next cyber global threat.

By contrast, ''white hat'' hackers are the more business savvy types who show corporations how fragile their ''fortress protected'' computer secure mainframes are...and for a fee...work to solve that company's security issues.

And yes: Be they ''white'' or ''black'' hat,those that make a mark be it positive or negative do merit some degree of underground fame. And yes: there are ''cyber police'' who make some progress in capturing ''black hat'' hackers.

And I do agree w/ the theory of many that ''anti-virus'' companies may have ''black hats'' on secret corporation payrolls to create virus nasties so to promote, for a fee, protection from these virus threats. This should be made illegal and enforced heavily. Unfortunately, as the saying goes and is so true: big money talks.....