WEEK 12: The Historical Hackerdom

 Ethical Hacking: black, grey, white hat hackers

    Nowadays, hackers may now be identified according to the metaphorical "hat" they wear. The question might occur: what's the difference between black hat hackers, white hat hackers, and gray hat hackers?

    

    When you think of a hacker, you might imagine someone willing to infect your computer with malware, or a shadowy person blocking the computers of your town's government buildings and demanding a ransom to unlock them. Perhaps you visualize hackers stealing thousands of victims' bank account, credit card, and Social Security data and selling them on the dark web. If you do, you're thinking about  "black hat" hackers. These are the cybercriminals who make news by launching ransomware attacks, stealing information from businesses and governments, and exposing customers' credit card information through data breaches.

    However, not every hacker wears a "black hat."

    Some hackers, referred to as gray hat hackers or white hat hackers, aren't out to cause harm to others. Instead, they may collaborate with businesses and governments to identify security holes in computer networks. If they do gain access to these computer systems' weaknesses, they may disclose them to the owners and hope to be compensated for their work.

    Okay, we've learned about three distinct types of hackers, but how can we distinguish between white and grey hat hackers?

    White hat hackers are experts at breaking into networks and exposing flaws in big merchants', government agencies', healthcare providers', and enterprises' computer systems. These hackers, on the other hand, make excellent use of their abilities. White hat hackers, often known as "ethical hackers," are salaried employees or contractors who work for organizations as security professionals and try to uncover security gaps through hacking.

Gray hat hackers are in the middle of the spectrum between black hat and white hat hackers. They don't necessary seek to hurt or steal from their victims, but they frequently hack into their targets' networks without their permission or knowledge to hunt for flaws in the system.