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FORTIGUARD LABSTHREAT INTELLIGENCE

CyberGlossary › Cybersecurity › What Is Hacking?

What Is Hacking?
Learn about the types of hackers, vulnerable devices to hacking, and hack
prevention tips.

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Definition
Types of Hackers
Most Vulnerable Devices
Hack Prevention
FAQs
Hacking—Definition, Types, Security, And More
A commonly used hacking definition is the act of compromising digital devices and
networks through unauthorized access to an account or computer system. Hacking is
not always a malicious act, but it is most commonly associated with illegal activity and
data theft by cyber criminals.

But what is hacking in a cyber security context?

Hacking in cyber security refers to the misuse of devices like computers, smartphones,
tablets, and networks to cause damage to or corrupt systems, gather information on
users, steal data and documents, or disrupt data-related activity.
A traditional view of hackers is a lone rogue programmer who is highly skilled in coding
and modifying computer software and hardware systems. But this narrow view does not
cover the true technical nature of hacking. Hackers are increasingly growing in
sophistication, using stealthy attack methods designed to go completely unnoticed by
cybersecurity software and IT teams. They are also highly skilled in creating attack
vectors that trick users into opening malicious attachments or links and freely giving up
their sensitive personal data.

As a result, modern-day hacking involves far more than just an angry kid in their
bedroom. It is a multibillion-dollar industry with extremely sophisticated and successful
techniques.

History of hacking and hackers

Hacking first appeared as a term in the 1970s but became more popular through the
next decade. An article in a 1980 edition of Psychology Today ran the headline “The
Hacker Papers” in an exploration of computer usage's addictive nature. Two years later,
two movies, Tron and WarGames, were released, in which the lead characters set about
hacking into computer systems, which introduced the concept of hacking to a wide
audience and as a potential national security risk.

Sure enough, later that year, a group of teenagers cracked the computer systems of
major organizations like Los Alamos National Laboratory, Security Pacific Bank, and
Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. A Newsweek article covering the event became the first
to use the word “hacker” in the negative light it now holds.

This event also led Congress to pass several bills around computer crimes, but that did
not stop the number of high-profile attacks on corporate and government systems. Of
course, the concept of hacking has spiraled with the release of the public internet, which
has led to far more opportunities and more lucrative rewards for hacking activity. This
saw techniques evolve and increase in sophistication and gave birth to a wide range of
types of hacking and hackers.

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FortiGuard Labs Global Threat Landscape Report 2H 2023 shows Cybercriminals
Exploiting New Industry Vulnerabilities 43% Faster than 1H 2023.
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Types Of Hacking/Hackers
There are typically four key drivers that lead to bad actors hacking websites or systems:
(1) financial gain through the theft of credit card details or by defrauding financial
services, (2) corporate espionage, (3) to gain notoriety or respect for their hacking
talents, and (4) state-sponsored hacking that aims to steal business information and
national intelligence. On top of that, there are politically motivated hackers—
or hacktivists—who aim to raise public attention by leaking sensitive information, such
as Anonymous, LulzSec, and WikiLeaks.

A few of the most common types of hackers that carry out these activities involve:

Black hat hackers

Black hat hackers are the "bad guys" of the hacking scene. They go out of their way to
discover vulnerabilities in computer systems and software to exploit them for financial
gain or for more malicious purposes, such as to gain reputation, carry out corporate
espionage, or as part of a nation-state hacking campaign.

These individuals’ actions can inflict serious damage on both computer users and the
organizations they work for. They can steal sensitive personal information, compromise
computer and financial systems, and alter or take down the functionality of websites and
critical networks.

White hat hackers

White hat hackers can be seen as the “good guys” who attempt to prevent the success
of black hat hackers through proactive hacking. They use their technical skills to break
into systems to assess and test the level of network security, also known as ethical
hacking. This helps expose vulnerabilities in systems before black hat hackers can
detect and exploit them.

The techniques white hat hackers use are similar to or even identical to those of black
hat hackers, but these individuals are hired by organizations to test and discover
potential holes in their security defenses.

Grey hat hackers

Grey hat hackers sit somewhere between the good and the bad guys. Unlike black hat
hackers, they attempt to violate standards and principles but without intending to do
harm or gain financially. Their actions are typically carried out for the common good. For
example, they may exploit a vulnerability to raise awareness that it exists, but unlike
white hat hackers, they do so publicly. This alerts malicious actors to the existence of the
vulnerability.

Click to See Larger Image

Devices Most Vulnerable To Hacking

Smart devices

Smart devices, such as smartphones, are lucrative targets for hackers. Android devices,
in particular, have a more open-source and inconsistent software development process
than Apple devices, which puts them at risk of data theft or corruption. However, hackers
are increasingly targeting the millions of devices connected to the Internet of Things
(IoT).

Webcams

Webcams built into computers are a common hacking target, mainly because hacking
them is a simple process. Hackers typically gain access to a computer using a Remote
Access Trojan (RAT) in rootkit malware, which allows them to not only spy on users
but also read their messages, see their browsing activity, take screenshots, and hijack
their webcam.

Routers

Hacking routers enables an attacker to gain access to data sent and received across
them and networks that are accessed on them. Hackers can also hijack a router to carry
out wider malicious acts such as distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, Domain
Name System (DNS) spoofing, or cryptomining.

Email

Email is one of the most common targets of cyberattacks. It is used to spread malware
and ransomware and as a tactic for phishing attacks, which enable attackers to target
victims with malicious attachments or links.

Jailbroken phones

Jailbreaking a phone means removing restrictions imposed on its operating system to

enable the user to install applications or other software not available through its official
app store. Aside from being a violation of the end-user’s license agreement with the
phone developer, jailbreaking exposes many vulnerabilities. Hackers can target
jailbroken phones, which allows them to steal any data on the device but also extend
their attack to connected networks and systems.
Prevention From Getting Hacked
There are several key steps and best practices that organizations and users can follow
to ensure they limit their chances of getting hacked.

Software update

Hackers are constantly on the lookout for vulnerabilities or holes in security that have not
been seen or patched. Therefore, updating software and operating systems are both
crucial to preventing users and organizations from getting hacked. They must enable
automatic updates and ensure the latest software version is always installed on all of
their devices and programs.

Use unique passwords for different accounts

Weak passwords or account credentials and poor password practices are the most
common cause of data breaches and cyberattacks. It is vital to not only use strong
passwords that are difficult for hackers to crack but also to never use the same
password for different accounts. Using unique passwords is crucial to limiting hackers’
effectiveness.

HTTPS encryption

Spoofed websites are another common vehicle for data theft, when hackers create a
scam website that looks legitimate but will actually steal the credentials that users enter.
It is important to look for the Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS) prefix at the
start of a web address. For example: https://www.fortinet.com.

Avoid clicking on ads or strange links

Advertisements like pop-up ads are also widely used by hackers. When clicked, they
lead the user to inadvertently download malware or spyware onto their device. Links
should be treated carefully, and strange links within email messages or on social media,
in particular, should never be clicked. These can be used by hackers to install malware
on a device or lead users to spoofed websites.

Change the default username and password on your router and smart
devices

Routers and smart devices come with default usernames and passwords. However, as
providers ship millions of devices, there is a risk that the credentials are not unique,
which heightens the chances of hackers breaking into them. It is best practice to set a
unique username and password combination for these types of devices.

Protect Yourself Against Hacking

There are further steps that users and organizations can take to protect themselves
against the threat of hacking.
Download from first-party sources

Only download applications or software from trusted organizations and first-party

sources. Downloading content from unknown sources means users do not fully know
what they are accessing, and the software can be infected with malware, viruses, or
Trojans.

Install antivirus software

Having antivirus software installed on devices is crucial to spotting potential malicious

files, activity, and bad actors. A trusted antivirus tool protects users and organizations
from the latest malware, spyware, and viruses and uses advanced detection engines to
block and prevent new and evolving threats.

Use a VPN

Using a virtual private network (VPN) allows users to browse the internet securely. It
hides their location and prevents hackers from intercepting their data or browsing
activity.

Do not login as an admin by default

"Admin" is one of the most commonly used usernames by IT departments, and hackers
use this information to target organizations. Signing in with this name makes you a
hacking target, so do not log in with it by default.

Use a password manager

Creating strong, unique passwords is a security best practice, but remembering them is
difficult. Password managers are useful tools for helping people use strong, hard-to-
crack passwords without having to worry about remembering them.

Use two-factor authentication

Two-factor authentication (2FA) removes people's reliance on passwords and provides

more certainty that the person accessing an account is who they say they are. When a
user logs in to their account, they are then prompted to provide another piece of identity
evidence, such as their fingerprint or a code sent to their device.
 Brush up on anti-phishing techniques

Users must understand the techniques that hackers deploy to target them. This is
especially the case with antiphishing and ransomware, which help users know the
telltale signs of a phishing email or a ransomware attack or ransomware settlements.
What Is Ethical Hacking? How Legal Is Ethical
Hacking?
Ethical hacking refers to the actions carried out by white hat security hackers. It involves
gaining access to computer systems and networks to test for potential vulnerabilities,
and then fixing any identified weaknesses. Using these technical skills for ethical
hacking purposes is legal, provided the individual has written permission from the
system or network owner, protects the organization’s privacy, and reports all
weaknesses they find to the organization and its vendors.
Hacking FAQs
What is hacking?
What are the seven types of hackers?
What is the biggest hack in history?
Which country has the most hackers?

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3 tips to find hacking on your site, and ways

to prevent and fix it
bookmark_border

Friday, February 28, 2014

 Google shows this message in search results for sites that we believe may have been
compromised. You might not think your site is a target for hackers, but it's surprisingly
common. Hackers target large numbers of sites all over the web in order to exploit the sites'
users or reputation.

One common way hackers take advantage of vulnerable sites is by adding spammy pages.
These spammy pages are then used for various purposes, such as redirecting users to
undesired or harmful destinations. For example, we've recently seen an increase in hacked
sites redirecting users to fake online shopping sites.

Once you recognize that your website may have been hacked, it's important to diagnose and
fix the problem as soon as possible. We want webmasters to keep their sites secure in order to
protect users from spammy or harmful content.

3 tips to help you find hacked content on your site

1. Check your site for suspicious URLs or directories:
Keep an eye out for any suspicious activity on your site by performing a site: search of your
site in Google, such as site:example.com. Are there any suspicious URLs or directories
that you do not recognize?
You can also set up a Google Alert for your site. For example, if you set a Google Alert
for site:example.com (viagra|cialis|casino|payday loans) , you'll receive an email
when these keywords are detected on your site.
2. Look for unnatural queries on the Search Queries page in Webmaster Tools:
The Search Queries page shows Google Web Search queries that have returned URLs from
your site. Look for unexpected queries as it can be an indication of hacked content on your
site.
Don't be quick to dismiss queries in different languages. This may be the result of spammy
pages in other languages placed on your website.
3. Enable email forwarding in Webmaster Tools
Google will send you a message if we detect that your site may be compromised. Messages
appear in Webmaster Tools' Message Center but it's a best practice to also forward these
messages to your email. Keep in mind that Google won't be able to detect all kinds of hacked
content, but we hope our notifications will help you catch things you may have missed.

Tips to fix and prevent hacking

 Stay informed:
The Security Issues section in Webmaster Tools will show you hacked pages that we detected on
your site. We also provide detailed information to help you fix your hacked site. Make sure to read
through this documentation so you can quickly and effectively fix your site.

 Protect your site from potential attacks:

It's better to prevent sites from being hacked than to clean up hacked content. Hackers will
often take advantage of security vulnerabilities on commonly used website management
software. Here are some tips to keep your site safe from hackers:
 Always keep the software that runs your website up-to-date.

 If your website management software tools offer security announcements, sign up to get the latest
updates.

 If the software for your website is managed by your hosting provider, try to choose a provider that
you can trust to maintain the security of your site.

We hope this post makes it easier for you to identify, fix, and prevent hacked spam on your
site. If you have any questions, drop by the Google Webmaster Help Forum.

If you find suspicious sites in Google search results, please report them using the Spam
Report tool.
Posted by Megumi Hitomi, Japanese Search Quality Team

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