What are 3 types of hackers?

Hacking is the process of gaining unauthorized access to a computer network or an electronic device. Individuals breach into a system either to cause harm or to highlight vulnerabilities in existing security measures.

There are some others whose motives remain ambiguous or even double-sided. Hackers are of six main types-

1. White Hat Hacker
2. Black Hat Hacker
3. Grey Hat Hacker
4. Red Hat Hacker
5. Hacktivist
6. Script Kiddie

White Hat Hacker

White hat hackers are the ethical hackers who use their skills to discover loopholes in existing cybersecurity measures to help fix them. These individuals are in high demand from companies that routinely handle sensitive data, in addition to government agencies that are responsible for national security. In the current internet era, white hat hackers are in high demand since the number of cybercrimes has increased drastically.

Private corporations often recruit white hat hackers as a part of an in-house IT security team. Moreover, white hat hackers also work as freelance cybersecurity consultants and participate in bug bounty programs. Companies that offer bug bounty programs generously reward ethical hackers who can discover and highlight exploitable vulnerabilities.

White hat hackers think almost exactly like Black Hat hackers and will try to breach into computer systems using every possible way. However, they do not steal any information or cause disruption. White hat hacking techniques are extremely useful in looking for loopholes that may endanger confidential information.

Black Hat Hacker

Black hat hackers are malicious individuals in cyberspace who try and break into systems & networks to steal confidential information. In addition to stealing, a black hat hacker may also delete or modify certain crucial files to cause disruption and inflict losses. These individuals have stimulated the need for cybersecurity.

In the span of one year between 2013-14, Yahoo suffered one of the worst data breaches in history. The internet giant disclosed that nearly all the 3 billion user accounts had been compromised. The stolen data included names, dates of birth, email addresses, and passwords. Moreover, it was also revealed that hundreds of millions of phone numbers linked to Yahoo accounts have also been stolen.

This was perhaps the worst cyberattack in history, severely affecting Yahoo’s reputation and reducing its valuation significantly prior to its sale to Verizon.

In 2018, luxury hotel chain Marriott International announced that hackers had stolen data of nearly 500 million customers. The stolen information included passport information, contact details, and travel plans. Additionally, Marriott also lost credit card information of about 100 million customers to the attack.

Black hat hackers will use any means necessary to gain unauthorized access into systems and cause disruption. They continue to evolve their methods as a response to growing cybersecurity awareness.

(https://ifflab.org/the-5-biggest-data-breaches-of-2018/)

Grey Hat Hacker

Grey hat hackers use methods that are similar to those of white and black hat hackers. However, they do not have any malicious intentions. These are among the most common types of hackers on the internet. A grey hat hacker may breach into a company’s private servers, but instead of stealing information, will notify the management about the vulnerability.

Sometimes the hacker may also offer to fix it for a fee. They neither steal data nor do they offer their services as security experts. But they don’t particularly concern themselves with the cybersecurity of others.

Numerous companies maintain secure databases at several locations. A grey hat hacker usually tries to find ways of illegally acquiring such confidential information. If an exploitable vulnerability is indeed present, the hacker contacts the company’s officials to inform them about it, so that appropriate action can be taken.

Red Hat Hackers

Red hat hackers are similar to policing agents on the internet. They actively search for black hat hackers and shut them down. Whenever they find one, they don’t report the hacker to the authorities, but take matters into their own hands. A red hat hacker will hack the would-be attackers’ computer and halt their malicious activities.

For instance, a red hat hacker can overload a black hacker’s network to block his attempts. Furthermore, some red hat hacker may also employ aggressive methods that may completely wipe-out a black hat hacker’s computer. In addition to acting individually, groups of red hat hackers may also team up to attack multiple black hat hackers.

Hacktivist

Hacktivists are hackers who seek to garner publicity for a certain cause by hacking into the systems or websites of relevant organizations. A Hacktivist may deface the website of a particular company or government agency to protest against certain policies and bring it to the public’s attention and raise awareness.

One of the most famous hacktivist groups operating online is called Anonymous. The group achieved global publicity for its efforts against the terrorist outfit ISIS. Anonymous successfully brought down nearly 150 websites associated with ISIS, in addition to identifying nearly 1,00,000 twitter accounts and 5000 videos used to spread propaganda and hate.

Wikileaks is another famous example of Hacktivism. The organization successfully acquired and released thousands of classified government documents relating to the US war in Afghanistan. The leaked documents highlighted several instances of US soldiers killing Afghan civilians and reporting them as collateral damage.

In addition to this, Wikileaks published documents pointing to malpractices aimed at sabotaging the 2016 election campaign of Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders.

Script Kiddies

A script kiddie is an amateur hacker who is only aware of basic hacking techniques. Script kiddies are unlikely to cause significant damage. Such people mainly use open-source hacking software or borrow it from people they know. Script kiddies don’t pose significant threat to anyone’s data and are potential hackers at best. Such individuals can deface a poorly protected website or slow it down by redirecting more traffic.

An increasingly connected digital world maximizes the threat of cybercrime manifold. As more internet companies emerge, the dearth of trained cybersecurity professionals creates exciting career opportunities. As a result, it provides a brilliant opportunity for governments to bolster employment and make the internet safer.

Sign up for cybersecurity courses at the Incognito Forensic Foundation (IFF Lab) to become a highly sought-after ethical hacker. Learn from experienced industry professionals with hands-on training sessions to forge a lucrative career.

For more information visit our website-

https://ifflab.org/training-and-consulting/

Sources:

As is commonly known, a hacker is an individual who uses their technical knowledge to gain access to a computerised system through non-standard means. We often think of hackers as criminals, with nefarious intent, and as often as this might be the case, there is more than one type of hacker out there. Let’s take a look at the three most common types of hackers and what makes them unique.

White Hat Hacker

The term white hat hacker refers to what you might also know as an ethical hacker. They utilise their skills to identify security vulnerabilities in hardware, software or networks. Unlike their counterparts, black hat hackers or malicious hackers, they respect the rule of law as it applies to hacking.

White hat hackers are often hired by organisations to uncover security flaws in their systems in order to safeguard their business from cybercriminals. They attempt to hack company systems and networks using methods black hat hackers would use, and even try to fool staff into clicking on links that lead to malware infestation.

White hat hackers are one reason why larger businesses have fewer issues. Cybercriminals know that it’s much harder to gain access to systems managed by large organisations than those operated by small companies that generally don't have the resources to examine every conceivable security risk.

Grey Hat Hacker

Falling in between white hat hackers and black hat hackers, grey hat hackers enact a blend of traits from both sides. One way to think of these hackers is as the proverbial anti-heroes of the cyber world. Their intentions are often good; however, their tactics generally tend to violate laws and ethical standards pertaining to hacking.

Somewhere between white hat hackers and black hat hackers lie grey hat hackers. These hackers often think that they’re doing a service to companies by hacking their systems and exposing their security risks, but generally speaking business owners don’t appreciate unauthorised access to their system infrastructure.

Grey hat hackers tend to be geared toward displaying their skill and gaining publicity, or even appreciation for what they believe to be a contribution to cyber security. These hackers don’t usually mean any harm; they’re often simply curious about a system and try to gain access regardless of privacy or laws. In most instances organisations are provided with valuable insight, however white hat hackers and much of the cyber community don’t view their methods as ethical.   

Black Hat Hacker

On the far side of the spectrum is our most well-known hacker, the black hat hacker. These individuals are criminals who break into computer networks with malicious intent. Often motivated by self-serving reasons, such as financial gain, revenge, or simply to cause havoc, these hackers will do anything to accomplish their goals. Stealing bank details, encrypting, leaking or destroying files, and infecting systems are just a few of the common crimes you can expect from these cybercriminals.

Like all hackers, black hats have an extensive knowledge of computer networks and experience in bypassing security protocols. These hackers also write the malware that is responsible for gaining unauthorised access to systems. They range from amateurs just starting out by spreading malware, to experienced hackers that are intent on stealing data, or even hackers conducting cyber espionage. Their primary motivation is usually financial gain, personal information, and login credentials. Not only do these hackers seek to steal data, they also like to modify or destroy it and even sell it on the black market. Stolen data is a very valuable commodity.

Unsurprisingly black hat hackers cause a lot of trouble for law enforcement, the problem is global and that makes it all the more difficult to stop. With hackers leaving little evidence, they are incredibly difficult to track. Authorities may have success shutting down operations in one country; however the same operation may be running across many countries meaning that it can continue to operate.

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