food chain into higher-value, more profitable work and markets. That economic fact of life applies to nations, companies and individuals. A study released this week shows how this natural law is being applied in the subculture of criminal computer hackers. Pilfered credit card numbers and bank account PIN numbers have become commodities on shadowy Web sites where stolen digital information is bought and sold. Company e-mail, business documents and personal health information are the new targets of choice for illegal hackers, according to Finjan, a San Jose-based maker of Web security software and appliances. In its report, Finjan said its researchers found a single server that housed a hefty pile of business and personal information stolen from 40 companies around the world. To be sure, computer security companies are in the business of not only finding but also marketing security risks. But the Finjan research is intriguing because it seems to point to an evolution in illicit computer hacking. Source: N.Y. Times

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