The word "hacking" can inspire a dramatic image of a guy hunched over his computer at all hours of the night, cracking a password, and stealing a million dollars for himself.
The truth is that these incidents pretty much never happen. Except for when they do.
"White hat" hacking is a situation in which someone uses a computer to improve computer security.
"Black hat" hacking is the seedier Hollywood side of the coin. It's name given to efforts to circumvent and take advantage of computer security.
People have been using computers and related systems to cheat, prank, and get ahead almost since their inception.
Here's a very brief history of black hat hacking.