Exam 312-50v11 topic 1 question 395 discussion

If he works as a Security Analyst for the Company that means he had the authority to find the vulnerability. The he told the company 2 Days Later.. That makes him White Hat. However, he can use the financial records later for personal gains, That makes him Black Hat. White Hat + Black Hat = Gray Hat. So answer is Correct.

The way CEH defines these hackers seem to be whether the hacking is for offensive or defensive purposes: - Black hat - offensive - White hat - defensive - Grey hat - both In this case, he had both a defensive objective (protect the organization's vulnerability by reporting it) and offensive objective (may take advantage of the info later). So strictly by CEH definition, it should be C. (Honestly, I don't understand why this matters. The important thing to convey is what actions are ethical or not rather than how to classify them..) Per CEHv12 P40: Black Hats: Black hats are individuals who use their extraordinary computing skills for illegal or malicious purposes.. ▪ White Hats: White hats or penetration testers are individuals who use their hacking skills for defensive purposes... ▪ Gray Hats: Gray hats are the individuals who work both offensively and defensively at various times..

Cybercriminals are individuals or teams of people who use technology to commit malicious activities on digital systems or networks with the intention of stealing sensitive company information or personal data, and generating profit. Gray hats exist in an ambiguous ethical hacking area between white and black. These hackers infiltrate systems without their targets’ consent, but they don’t exploit vulnerabilities to cause harm. Instead, they inform the victims of the hack in order to help them improve their security. But gray hat hackers don’t always share this information for free. While gray hats inform companies that they’ve been hacked, they sometimes ask for a fee in exchange for the details. In these cases, the victims must pay if they want to know their system’s vulnerabilities. But if they refuse to pay, gray hat hackers will not attempt to retaliate and cause harm.

ChatGPT: Answer: C. Gray hat Explanation: Cybercriminal (option A): A cybercriminal engages in malicious activities for personal gain or with the intent to cause harm. John's actions, while unethical, are not driven by personal gain or harm. White hat (option B): White hat hackers are ethical hackers who use their skills to help organizations by finding and fixing security vulnerabilities. John's actions do not align with the ethical behavior expected of a white hat. Gray hat (option C): Gray hat hackers fall somewhere between white hat and black hat hackers. They may violate ethical standards, but their actions are not explicitly malicious. John's curiosity-driven exploration of the vulnerability without immediate disclosure puts him in a gray hat category.

Definitely not a Black or White hat. Those of you who claimed Gray hat is also incorrect because he is not discovering vulnerability, but rather accessing sensitive info. As a result, it appears he is a cybercriminal.

Cybercriminal

Gray hat is correct

The glaring details is with this statement - "He does so out of curiosity about the other employees and may take advantage of this information later." . Gray Hats is this: Gray hat hackers represent the middle ground between white hat hackers, who operate on behalf of those maintaining secure systems, and black hat hackers who act maliciously to exploit vulnerabilities in systems. One of the most common examples given of a gray hat hacker is someone who exploits a security vulnerability in order to spread public awareness that the vulnerability exists. Do you think if organization finds out that an employee exploits the system and has plans to exploit the information he discovers for his advantage would make him a "Gray Hat"? If an employee has a security clearance he's already in violation of security policy, two he didn't report it upon discovery, his plan to take advantage of the information later after 2 days. Employee is a Cybercriminal.

John, a security analyst working for an organization... …Before reporting the vulnerability,... Above 2 comment make him a gray hat or a white hat. cos it is his job to safe guide the company.

I would go with Cybercriminal here, he does an action without disclosure.

The correct option is C. Gray hat

He has access.....and withholding it...that is a grey hacker for me...Option C

D. Black Hat "may take advantage of this information later"

You have to report this INMEDIATELY. Besides, it says "He does so out of curiosity about the other employees and may take advantage of this information later". This is criminal activity, so I think the best answer is "cyber criminal", his behavior is not justified.

Hacker Classes - Gray Hats Gray hats are the individuals who work both offensively and defensively at various times. Gray hats might help hackers to find various vulnerabilities in a system or network and, at the same time, help vendors to improve products (software or hardware) by checking limitations and making them more secure. (P.46/30)

Gray Hats Individuals who work both offensively and defensively at various times. (P.46)

B White Hats: White hats or penetration testers are individuals who use their hacking skills for defensive purposes. These days, almost every organization has security analysts who are knowledgeable about hacking countermeasures, which can secure its network and information systems against malicious attacks. They have permission from the system owner.