Hacking



Abstract

Technologies are introducing and expanding everyday. There is a negative side to these advancements too. With the expanding technologies hackers get more room of attacking the systems. Hacking is an issue on which Governments, companies and private citizens all are worried about. In this paper I have discussed the types of hackers based on their nature of activities they associate themselves into. Benefits of being a white hat hacker are also highlighted. The characteristics of black and gray hat hackers are also discussed.

Hacking1

Introduction4

Overview on the Types of Hackers5

White Hat Hackers5

Black Hat Hacker6

Grey Hat Hacker6

Conclusion7

References9

Hacking

Introduction

Hacking is a clever technique of reaching at clever solutions through unobvious means. It is about the use of information and creativity to surmount the barriers. Hacking is not necessarily about law breaking but can be used to break the law. Learning hacking is no crime unless used for illegal activities.

Hacking is done for many reasons. Some hackers are intrinsically motivated to hack. The idea of involvement within a task excites them and after its completion they feel internal satisfaction (Voiskounsky and Smyslova, 2003).Others hack because they believe that information must be freely available to all .Some people hack to earn money. Political or ethnic association to a particular group is another factor for practicing hacking. (Jin Woo, 2003).

Hacking has grown from its early days. People practicing hacking have got fame through many channels. No matter how many barriers are adapted and security blocks are installed hacking would still be there as long as technology advancements are there (Clarke et.al, 2003, p.5).

In earlier days hacking developed because of the restricted usage of computers in universities due to their high costs. When the requests for using computers were rejected some users would challenge the authorities. They would search for means for accessing computers by detecting such bugs or passwords to surpass the restrictions. Initially these intrusions were for fun and small but sooner they changed into a means of causing destructions.

When these computer destructions became obvious media picked up the story and named these computer intruders as hackers. Since calling someone a hacker was considered a compliment professionals preferred the terms crackers or intruders for people who adapted to the negative side of hacking.

Overview on the Types of Hackers

On the nature of activities hackers adapts themselves to they are named. These names are coined for distinguishing between good and evil hackers. There are namely three types of hackers white hats, gray hats and black hats.

White Hat Hackers

White hats are professional people hired by firms and organizations for their systems security maintenance. They use the same techniques that could be used to perform destructive activities. White hats help in improving the overall security system of an organization. They device methodologies for preventing attack on the system security. White hats do not perform any work illegally. They are also referred to as the ethical hackers.

White hats work with the aim of protecting the organizational systems from all future problems that could ...