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I went from being a kid who loved to perform magic tricks to becoming the world's most notorious hacker, feared by corporations and the government.

I got so passionate about technology. Hacking to me was like a video game. It was about getting trophies. I just kept going on and on, despite all the trouble I was getting into, because I was hooked.

I was addicted to hacking, more for the intellectual challenge, the curiosity, the seduction of adventure; not for stealing, or causing damage or writing computer viruses.

I'm a hacker, but I'm the good kind of hackers. And I've never been a criminal.

I characterize myself as a retired hacker. I'm applying what I know to improve security at companies.

Hacking was the only entertainment that would occupy my mind - like a huge video game, but with real consequences. I could have evaded the FBI a lot longer if I had been able to control my passion for hacking.

I get hired to hack into computers now and sometimes it's actually easier than it was years ago.

Then again, my case was all about the misappropriation of source code because I wanted to become the best hacker in the world and I enjoyed beating the security mechanisms.

I'm a really good hacker, but I'm not a sensible person.