When you think of Hacking, surely the first thing that comes to your mind is evil people trying to hack systems illegally. But actually, that conception is very far from reality! Did you know that there are different types of hackers? Here we explain it to you! We will also talk about which are the most used programming languages for hacking.  

But … what is really a hacker?  

The correct definition would refer to the expert in new technologies who uses his knowledge in programming to solve problems, know the weaknesses of a system in security, and, of course, experts with high knowledge of computers and computer networks. But hackers can have different motivations: to profit, fix a problem, make some claim or simply overcome a challenge.  

According to the Cambridge Dictionary, there are two meanings for the term hacker. The first, the most negative: “Person who illegally accesses other people’s computer systems to appropriate them or obtain secret information.” The second with a somewhat kinder look: “An expert in computer management, who deals with the security of systems and developing techniques to improve those same systems.”  

TYPES OF HACKERS  

And with this clarification, let’s get to the heart of the matter. Also, according to the Cambridge dictionary, there are two large groups among hackers: those who carry out illegal activities, the “bad guys” (crackers) and the “good guys”, who look for flaws in the programs and are in charge of improving them.  

The experts classified them as ‘white hats’ and ‘black hats’ to facilitate their identification. A difference that is taken from cowboy movies, where the good guys wore white hats, and the bad guys wore black hats. Curious, right?  

Over time, the color gamut has expanded, and so have the names and definitions of the types of hackers. The best known are the following:  

White hat  

In this case, reference is made to those who make ethics their flag and, therefore, work to protect systems. They usually hold positions in computer security companies, and their primary function is to find holes in the systems.  

Black hat  

This profile, also known as a cracker, uses its computer skills to break security systems and gain access to restricted areas, infect networks or simply take control of them; They are responsible for forging identities, cloning cards, etc. In this case, ethics is conspicuous by its absence, and they do it for personal or other people’s benefit. The objective is, in 99.99% of the cases, the self-benefit.  

Gray hat  

Many think that you cannot be black or white in this life, that there are grays. Well, in this case, the profile we are talking about is just that, a gray, a mixture of the other two, since they can break into systems illegally, but always with good intentions, or almost. They get into the companies’ security systems and then postulate as the “solvers” and repair them. Another thing they usually do is obtain information of great importance, but illegally, and then make it reach a public opinion.  

Red Hat  

This could be something like the Robin Hood of hackers. It acts without mercy, but against those towards the black hat. Your only goal in life is to destroy and tear down your entire infrastructure.  

Blue hat  

They are those who work in computer consulting, testing the errors of a system before its launch.  

Whistleblower  

Well said, he would be the malicious informant, but at heart, he is nothing more than a grudge, that he is not particularly happy with his work or that he has been hired by the competition to infiltrate and reveal trade secrets. By having effortless access to information, being within the company, they are pretty dangerous when it comes to hacking the system.  

Hacktivist  

In this case, the pun makes it quite clear. They are hackers with a specific social, ideological or political position who use technology for their activism. Anonymous celebrities, for example.  

Script-kiddie  

Without wanting to offend, these somewhat like novice hackers. They have no technical skills and wish to profit from a trick without really knowing how to do it. They are also known as rookies or rookies. Although the former does something like cybervandalism by extracting malicious software and doesn’t care much about the inner workings of the systems.  

There are a few more, but these numbers are the most representative. Interesting, huh? Well, before understanding the best programming languages for hacking, you must walk through the importance of programming in hacking.   

Programming skills are essential to becoming an effective hacker. Learning programming also gives you the power to create your own custom malware, making antivirus software more difficult to detect. Most of the hacking tools are freely available and open source. So, if you’ve mastered the art of programming, using and improving hacking tools is an easy task.  

Now, the fun part! Let’s talk about the languages!  

1. Python:  

Python is a widely-used general-purpose, high-level programming language. It is a very simple yet powerful scripting language; it’s open-source and object-oriented. It has excellent libraries that can be used for hacking and writing very useful normal programs other than hacking programs. It plays a vital role in writing hacking scripts, exploits, and malicious programs.   

Python also has the availability of Ready-Made Modules. An outstanding feature that makes hacking easy with Python is the availability of ready-made modules. You also use Python socket programming for discovering vulnerabilities in a system.  

Also, you can read: Basic Python Projects to Develop in a Weekend.

2. JavaScript  

Currently, JavaScript is one of the best programming languages for hacking web applications. Understanding JavaScript allows hackers to discover vulnerabilities and exploit the web.   

JavaScript can be used to read saved cookies. It is used to develop cross-site scripting programs for Hacking. Furthermore, JavaScript is also used to spread and reproduce malware and viruses quickly.  

Furthermore, with the release of Node.js, JavaScript now supports backend development. This implies a broader field of exploitation. A hacker can use JS to spy on typed words, inject malicious code, and track browsing history, to name a few.  

3. PHP  

The hypertext preprocessor or PHP is a server-side programming language used to create websites. Understanding PHP will help hackers better understand web hacking techniques.  

PHP is used in server-side scripting. With PHP, you can write a custom application that alters a web server and makes the target server susceptible to attack.  

In fact, PHP is one of the most potent server-side languages used by most web domains. Learning PHP helps you fight malicious attackers. Popular content management systems are based on PHP; therefore, PHP enables you to protect or compromise websites.  

4. SQL  

Next on this list of the best hacking programming languages is SQL. Having a deep understanding of SQL enables you to understand the structure of a database, helping you decide which scripts or tools to implement.  

SQL is used for web hacking; it is undoubtedly the best programming language for hacking large databases. Countering a database attack is almost impossible without a good understanding of SQL.  

With SQL, hackers can perform SQL injection attacks. Hackers use SQL to develop various hacking programs based on SQL injection. SQL injection attacks help hackers to view and modify sensitive information in databases.  

5. C Programming  

C, the mother of all programming languages, is used massively in the security field; it helps exploit writing and development. The low-level nature of C outperforms other programming languages for hacking.  

Hackers use C programming to access and manipulate system resources and hardware components, such as RAM. Security professionals primarily use C when asked to manage hardware and system resources. Learning C will also help hackers to get an overview of the structure of operating systems.   

C is also used to create shell codes, rootkits, exploits, make undetectable malware, keyloggers, and more. Sometimes it is also advisable to learn both C and C ++ as both are useful for hackers.  

Finally, it is good to know that exploiting some vulnerability types does not require any particular language. Sometimes it hacks everything in there, in whatever language or form you find it. Sometimes it is necessary to automate part of the process, for example, password cracking, for which you can use the language of your choice. 

We hope this information has been of interest to you, and we don’t want to miss out on inviting you to join one of these great job opportunities at Cafeto. We are such a cool company. 😉