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Hacking is the manipulation of digital systems to do things they were not designed to do. Using a combination of technical expertise, specialized software scripts, social engineering and automated scanners to locate weaknesses in digital perimeters, hackers can gain unauthorized access to sensitive personal information or take control of critical business systems. While the traditional view is of lone rogue hackers testing boundaries from their basements, today hacking is a multibillion-dollar industry underpinned by ransomware groups, nation-state actors and underground marketplaces that offer hacking-as-a-service.

The first step is identifying the objective. This includes figuring out what type of system or network you’re attacking (e.g., point-of-sale systems used by restaurants and hotels). The hacker then runs keyword searches to find evidence of valuable data. If he discovers that the system uses Micros, for example, the hacker knows it might contain credit card information or other financial data.

Once the hacker has gained entrance, he moves laterally across systems and exploits any vulnerabilities that arise to his advantage. This may be as simple as impersonating employees to redirect payments or as sophisticated as deploying ransomware that encrypts company files and demands a payment in crypto before decrypting them.

The bad guys behind these attacks are called black hat hackers, and they do a wide range of malicious activities from stealing credit cards to disrupting the operations of major businesses. They may be driven by greed, a desire to impress friends or coworkers, or even a sense of competition that motivates them to outdo their fellow hackers. There are also political activists—known as hacktivists—who use their skills to draw attention to social or political issues.