The Black, White, and Grey Hat Hacking

Hacking:

Black, White, and Grey Hacking

Abstract— Organizations and individuals alike have been victims of hacking and cybercrime activities. In most cases, the world gets to hear of the harm and disruption that hacking brought about by hacking. However, what few know is that there are different types of hacking and that there is a good side to hacking. The hacking that most people have been exposed to through personal experiences, news outlets, and movies is known as black hat hacking. This type of hacking seeks to extort, harm, disrupt, and steal. However, there is also white hat hacking and grey white hacking. White hat hacking is done to bring about positive change by showcasing the loopholes that black hat hackers can use to exploit victims. Further, it is crucial to note that white hat hacking is permitted, and the intrusions are therefore legal. Like white hat hacking, grey hat hacking seeks to expose loopholes or security mishaps that black hat hackers can exploit. However, grey hat hackers are not permitted, and therefore their hacking is illegal.

Keywords—Hacking, Black Hat Hacking, White Hat Hacking, Grey Hat Hacking I.     Introduction The word hacking leaves a sour taste in the mouth of individuals and companies alike. As recently as 2021 July, the world woke up to the news that Saudi Aramco was being extorted for millions of dollars over leaked data [1]. Such reports, among others, often leave people scared of hackers and their goal of earning money through the exploitation of individuals’ and organizations’ vulnerabilities. Cases of extortion, identity theft, data breaches, malicious damage, and the loss or modification of sensitive data pervade the topic of hacking. However, few appear to have an understanding or could even refuse to comprehend the positive side of hacking because of the negative connotation attached to hacking. But, it is crucial that the aspect of hacking is demystified and its other positive sides revealed. II.    Black, Grey, and White Hacking Hacking is not entirely bad. What makes hacking bad is the illegality of the action and the motive behind a person’s decision to hack. Movies have helped to shape the conversation on hacking and hackers through the representation of a person wearing a hooded sweatshirt and typing as fast as they can to break into what they normally say is a ‘mainframe.’ Such representations have shaped people’s understanding of hacking, and few have little regard and understanding of the positive sides of hacking [2]. However, this kind of hacking with an intention to force one’s entry into an organization’s database, mainframe, or systems is known as black hat hacking. The positive side of hacking and one that is often not talked about, is known as white hat hacking. Lastly, grey hat hacking represents the middle ground between black hat hackers and white hat hackers. III.   Black Hat Hackers Black hat hackers are individuals who are rich in knowledge about computers, computer networks, computer systems, and security protocols. These individuals use their knowledge to bypass the security features of organizations and individuals with the goal of extortion, theft, or spying. For such individuals, hacking is used for personal gain or other malicious activities. This group of hackers are known to develop malware or harmful programs that help them gain access to victims’ networks, systems, and security features. After access, they can prevent access by the victims, steal data, modify data, or threaten to delete or destroy the victims’ data [3]. These individuals spearhead some of the biggest and most famous attacks on companies and individual profiles. Further, because of their malicious intent, these individuals often expose data breaches or sell data on the dark web. At times, they can simply gather intelligence and sell the same online...