A hacker can be described as someone who seeks to circumvent security measures through non-standard means and exploit weaknesses in computer systems. Their intentions may range from malicious acts such as stealing sensitive information to acts of cyber-sabotage or cyberwarfare on behalf of their employer. There are many types of hackers with different levels of knowledge, skill, and experience, ranging from ethical hackers (white hat) to crackers (black hat) to people with little or no technical knowledge (script kiddies).
The Essential Basics
As more and more people have a need to be online through their computer, they may not realize that they are exposing themselves to security risks from anyone who wants to do them harm. Hackers don’t use guns or blades – instead they rely on technology in order to destroy others information. There are those who call themselves hackers for good and those for evil; and then there are neutral hacktivists who try to exploit security flaws and security systems by any means possible.
Types of Hackers
- White Hat Hacker : Authorized Hackers
- Black Hat Hacker : Criminal Hackers
- Grey Hat Hacker : Depend on their interest
- Script Kiddies : amateur Hackers
- State Sponsored hackers : International Threats
- Hacktivists: Politically Motivated Hackers
- Red Team Vs Blue team
Black Hat: Criminal Hackers
A black hat hacker is someone who gains illegal access to a computer system or network with malicious intent. The term was coined in 1998 by security specialist Marcus J. Ranum in reference to an early Internet Worm that used an external file called blackhat.doc as part of its payload (i.e., a piece of malware meant to cause damage to a targeted computer). The name stuck as a reference for anyone who goes outside computer security protocols in order to gain unauthorized access and potentially cause harm online. Black hats often use their skills for monetary gain through cybercrime or fraud, but can also be politically motivated criminals and are frequently referred to as cyberterrorists.
White Hat: Authorized Hackers
In computer security, a White Hat is an ethical hacker or IT security expert who tries to discover and report security vulnerabilities before malicious hackers can exploit them. The terms ethical hacking and white hat originated in detective work when a person dressed completely in white was searching for someone so that no one noticed him. In computer security, White Hat has a similar meaning as in detective work.
Grey Hat: sessional based on interest
The defining feature of a Grey Hat is that they use their skills to perform hacking as a service. It’s important to note that Grey Hats are distinct from Black Hats. While it’s possible for a Grey Hat to change hats (i.e., go bad), they generally have a strong moral compass and try to avoid damaging networks or affecting users in any negative way. For them, hacking is more about intellectual satisfaction and less about financial gain; don’t mistake them for Robin Hoods — they’re not breaking into companies with malicious intent! Note: Gray Hats are often referred to as ethical hackers by certain circles within cybersecurity.
Script Kiddies: amateur Hackers
Non-skilled amateurs who hack for fun and/or profit by way of pre-packaged exploits and tools are known as script kiddies. These hackers rarely understand what they’re doing (if at all) but can still cause damage to a computer system or network through their seemingly innocent use of malware. When software is sold freely or shared across the internet, there’s an element of risk involved—and that’s where script kiddies come in. They may just be kids with a lot of time on their hands, but if you find yourself facing an attack from a group like Anonymous or Lizard Squad—in which some members may be more skilled than others—it might not hurt to prepare as if they are trying to do real damage.
State Sponsored hackers : International Threats
An important consideration for companies and organizations that could potentially be targeted by state-sponsored hackers is that many foreign countries actively invest in their own state-sponsored hacking teams. So, even if your business doesn’t directly deal with national security or government interests—even if you are not a political institution—you may still be a target because of your connections to other institutions that do have those types of interests and connections. One thing to note about state-sponsored hacking is that these types of attacks can be extremely difficult to trace back to their source. As such, you may never know if an attack was sponsored by a specific country at all.
Hacktivists: Politically Motivated Hackers
Hacktivism is a form of activism in which proponents employ hacking techniques to further their political agenda. This can be done through defacing websites, denial-of-service attacks and other forms of cyber-attacks. Hacktivism is an example of digital direct action. Examples include organizing protests and demonstrations in response to controversial events or policy issues; or performing denial-of-service attacks on web pages that express views with which they disagree (known as DDoS) . There are differing schools of thought in whether hacktivism should be considered synonymous with cyberterrorism and/or traditional terrorism.
Red Team vs Blue Team
The terms Red Team and Blue Team come from a U.S. military strategy of having two teams (red and blue) that play opposing forces in order to achieve strategic goals more effectively. For example, if Red Team is attacking a city (or business), Blue Team’s role is to defend it.
In IT security and cybersecurity teams are comprised of people whose job it is to conduct penetration testing on an organization or company’s computer systems or networks in order to test their resilience against cyber attacks and ensure they aren’t vulnerable. The blue team defends against and responds to the red team attack.
Type of Attackers
Every business has 2 type of attackers:
- Insider Attackers
- OutSider Attackers
The list of types of attacks inside these 2 categories depends on your business. for example in cybersecurity you may have phishing as a type of outsider attack but being government economic downturns, government instability, frauds, public insecurity, cyber-crimes, and foreign threats such as terrorism could be your threats.
Insiders Attackers:
Authorized individuals – Who intentionally or unintentionally compromise the system or data.
Internal employees are weakest link.
disgruntled employees.
Assault on an employee
Blackmailing
Browsing of proprietary information
Computer Abuse
Fraud and theft
Information bribery
Input of falsified or corrupt data.
38% to 52% are internal threats.
Vendors play a critical role in internal threats, its keeps 14% risk.
Improper Disposals of papers/disks/tapes are having approx 6% risk.
Internal Theft is having 8% risk to the organization.
24% risk poses from employee mistakes and actions. It can be avoided by training and awareness with proper access control mechanisms.
Sale of internal information
Backdoor to virus, logic bomb, trojan horse, phishing.
Outsiders Attackers:
These are unauthorized outsiders who try to gain access and launch majority of attacks but they are least successful. They can be mitigated if organization has good defense in depth.
48 to 63% are external threats.
Phishing, various hackings and malware risks upto 31%.
External Theft 17%
DDOS attack
Ransomware
Password attacks
SQL injections
Zero day exploits
The Future Of The Hacker
There will always be a need for people who test security systems in order to find potential problems before they can actually cause any damage. Both white hats and black hats are useful to society.
Organizations keeps the Red and Blue teams to keep on testing their security.
How To Become A Hacker
So you want to become a hacker? Here are some tips to start you on your way!
- You can study online articles
- You can take professional training
- You can certify in CEH (certified ethical hacker)
- OWASP is also provide good certifications
How Hackers Are Defined By Others
White Hat Hackers & Black Hat Hackers : Grey Hat Hackers & Red Team vs. Blue Team. State Sponsored Hackers vs Hacktivists
A hacker is a person skilled in information technology who uses their technical knowledge to achieve goal or overcome an obstacle, within a computerized system by non-standard means. This makes hacking one of the fastest growing career options for people with both technical and social skills. When you hear about hacking in pop culture it’s typically referencing something that occurs on computers – however hacking has many other types including various social media hacks as well as covert physical interference. As far as career opportunities go – there is no shortage of ways to get involved with hacking whether you’re working on your own projects or doing some type of consulting work.