6 min readHacker Gummo is a legendary figure in the Crypto world, a Crypto amalgamation of DB Cooper, Frank Abagnale, and Hugh Jackman’s character from Swordfish.
But this story has a twist – the millionaire black hat hacker that used his hacking skills to first access the soft white underbelly (if your wondering about that choice of wording, it will make sense later on) of exchanges and companies, to using his almost supernatural coding powers to secure networks and computers.
But just like any figure that lives using illicit activities, but lives a “normal” life in the light, there’s a pinch of fiction in the mythology that surrounds Hacker Gummo.
They say to get the most accurate information, you need to go straight to the source. Luckily Hacker Gummo, has shared his story on a YouTube channel called, Soft White Underbelly (see I told you it would make sense).
In the second forty one minute video – he reveals that he holds a staggering 7 billion dollars’ worth of Bitcoin.
The Genesis of Gummo: who is Hean
Hacker Gummo was born in Jacksonville, Florida to a single mother. According to his own account, she passed away in 1985, and his older brother essentially abandoned him in his early life.
His hacking career started at the young age of 14, first “phreaking phones” (a primitive form of hacking that uses phone vulnerabilities to avoid charges).
He used his skills to survive, through programming credit cards, social engineering hacks, and gas pump manipulation.
He continued being a black hat hacker to survive, until he met his wife, with whom he had a daughter.
This was a pivotal point for Hacker Gummo where he left his nefarious ways behind, got a low paying job, paid bills, and lived just like a normal person lives.
But the draw of community and tech was too strong. He met legendary hacker Tron at the CHAOS conference. The duo started exploring smart cards, the small cards you find in credit cards and access cards.
In the first of his two interviews, he says that Tron and Hacker Gummo managed to develop a way to program satellite TV cards, which gave people unlimited access to the Direct TV services, so they could watch all the available programming for free.
Eventually he started offering the tools he developed to hack the Direct TV services, to other hackers.
Unfortunately, one of his “clients” doxed him (revealing a person’s true identity and location on the internet) forcing him to move to Indiana and then Chicago where he got numerous jobs.
The intersection of hacking and Cryptocurrency
The obvious and less than savoury intersection of the two is ransomware.
In Gummo’s case, the intersection was much more legitimate and impressive. When Bitcoin was still at a meagre $200, he created four supercomputers to mine BTC, that where kept in downtown Chicago.
During that time he claims to have mined a staggering 80,000 coins, likely now part of his 7 billion dollar stash.
The complexities and ethical dilemmas
Striking a balance: ethical hacking vs. wealth accumulation
Gummo used his skills initially to survive, and that illegal activity is much more justifiable than his subsequent fraudulent actions, which focused on wealth accumulation.
Later on, he became a white hat hacker (someone who uses their skills to counter bad hackers) and used his knowledge to gather 7 billion dollars in Bitcoin through ethical means.
Gummo as an ethical hacker
Gummo was one of the first cybersecurity experts, before the term was even coined.
He helped the companies that he initially targeted, including DirectTV, secure their systems against future attacks.
Conclusion: the legacy and mystique of Gummo
Gummo is a now legendary figure, both in the world of hacking, and the Cryptocurrency community.
Everyone loves a Robin Hood story, or other similar stories where a scoundrel becomes the hero, and Gummo’s story has all the trappings of these amazing tales.
As a pioneer of both Crypto and cybersecurity, he will undeniably be part of both of these communities’ Bitcoin millionaire pantheon.
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