In 2011, a young boy uploaded a series of YouTube tutorials under the handle . He presented himself as a sophisticated cyber-expert, complete with an Alienware desktop background (on what was clearly an HP machine) and an air of intense seriousness.
Nextgenhacker101 became the poster child for the —someone who uses basic tools they don't understand to try and look like a master hacker.
If you're actually interested in how the tool works without the "hacker" theatrics, experts on Hacker News and YouTube explain that it's a simple way to find where a network connection is failing. Nextgenhacker101 Tracert
What is Traceroute: What Does it Do & How Does It Work? - Fortinet
The comedy—and the reason the video went viral on sites like Reddit —came from his explanation of how tracert worked: In 2011, a young boy uploaded a series
He also pointed to the Google search bar and various desktop icons as evidence of his "hacking software" and "private chat functions". The Legacy
He told his audience that by typing tracert followed by a website name (like Google), he was "hacking" into their servers to reveal secret connection points. If you're actually interested in how the tool
While the original channel is long gone, the videos are still archived across the internet as a nostalgic reminder of the "wild west" era of YouTube tutorials.