Some people target particular individuals or organisations out of revenge due to percieved mistreatment by them. Others do it because- and to show that they can. The 'I did this' mentality.
It can also gives them a sense of power over their 'vitims' and they get a thrill seeing the effect of their creation at work.
There is a whole underground network virus writers/hackers and Trojan engineers, and a whole sub-industry has grown around their activities. Although films like Matrix and Swordfish to some extent has glamourised this lifestyle, it is largely a selfish and self congratulatory activity.

However, the picture is not entirely bleak; many virii and trojans have highlighted weaknesses in operating systems - especially Windows based - which have since been rectified or at least had a reduced threat level. This has in the long term allowed legitimate coders to plug and improve their skills, though the worrying fact that there are still a huge number of viruses in the wild is something that should be addressed prior to systems being released.

Learn more about this author, Claire Barker.
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