Who is a Hacker?

Although the word “hacker” generally has a negative connotation, a hacker is not always a bad individual. A hacker is only a person who uses computer programming or special techniques to get over a challenge or problem. Hackers may be driven by a number of reasons, including profit, gripe, information gathering, or to assess system flaws to help devise defenses against possible hackers.

Types of hackers and what they do

Generally conducted by one or more hackers, hacking is all about the unlawful intrusion into a network or computer. Nevertheless, a hacker can be any individual, and they either work alone or are hired by an organization that has the object to upset something or inflict damage––gratuitously. Often, they look to change security systems to attain their objective, which is different from the real purpose of the system.

A number of organizations also hire hackers as their full-time employees. These hackers take advantage of their skills to find faults, susceptible areas, and frail spots in the organization’s security system. This is done to explore and rectify the flaws and stop malicious hackers from getting into the security system.

Types of Hackers around the Globe

‘Black Hat’ Hackers

Originated from Western films, the term “black hat” refers to the vile individuals who used to put on black hats, while the upright men would wear white hats.

A black-hat hacker is a person who seeks to gain unlawful entry into a system or network to exploit them for malevolent reasons. The black-hat hacker does not have any consent or authority to affect their targets, and tries to inflict damage by affecting security systems, changing functions of websites and networks, or closing systems. They often do so to steal or gain access to passwords, financial information, and other personal data.

‘White Hat’ Hackers

In contrast, white-hat hackers are thought to be the good guys, working with organizations to reinforce the security of a system. A white hat is permitted to involve the targets and to affect them within the set rules of engagement. Often referred to white-hat hackers, these individuals are expert at ethical hacking tools, methods, and practices to protect an company’s information systems.

As opposed black-hat hackers, white-hat hackers take advantage of security networks and look for backdoors when they are legitimately allowed to do so. Ethical hackers always reveal every susceptibility they find in the company’s security system so that it can be patched before they are get abused by malevolent actors. Some Fortune 50 companies like Facebook, Microsoft, and Google also use ethical hackers.

‘Grey Hat’ Hackers

These hackers take advantage of networks and computer systems in the way that black hats do, but do so without any malevolent intention, revealing all gaps and flaws to law enforcement agencies or intelligence agencies. Typically, these hackers browse the internet and break into computer systems to alert the administrator or the owner that their system or network contains one or more flaws that must be patched quickly. Grey-hat hackers may also fleece the hacked, offering to fix the fault for a minimal fee.

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