Who Hacks?

 

Hackers are typically divided into the following categories: 

1. Black hat hackers .....

Also known as criminal hackers or crackers, these people are those that maliciously gain access to another person’s system for selfish gain. They typically hack electronic devices and modify, steal, or delete critical files for their personal gain. 

2. White hat hackers.....

White hat hackers, or ethical hackers, discover ways on how a device’s system can be exploited in order to learn how people can defend themselves against possible attacks. These ethical hackers also make it a point that the security services they issue are updated. They do this by being on the lookout and actively digging for the newest exploits and new system vulnerabilities. Ethical hackers also make it a point that they discover new ways to learn how an electronic device can be tinkered with to maximize its efficiency. For this reason, they build communities that allow them to crowdsource their knowledge in order to improve the way people use their devices. 

3. Grey hat hackers ......

As the name suggests, they are driven by white and black hat hacking motivations – they are the ones who employ both illegal and legal techniques to exploit or improve a system. 

However, if a grey hat hacker exploits another person’s system, he typically makes it a point to inform the owner of the exploits made and then offers suggestions on what can be done to buff up system security. 

Once you are able to identify the hackers that you are likely to encounter, you will be able to know the motivation that they have for hacking and the types of hacks that they are likely to come up with.