What is a hackathon all about?

The words ‘hack’ and ‘hacker’ usually make us raise our eyebrows. ‘Hack’ can mean ‘life hack’ or simply a quicker and more convenient way of fulfilling everyday tasks, i.e., working smarter not harder. It can also mean the act of breaching into things and networks online. However, there’s much more to hacking than this. This is where hackathon comes into play, as it is not only a new-age skill but also helps to keep the digital world secure. Here’s understanding it in details. 

Meaning of Hackathon  
In layman’s terms, hackathon is an event developed to accomplish a goal through the help of computer languages like coding. It is designed in such a way that it helps in the production of everyday digital products, through the process of online hacking. This hacking is not only legal and ethical but is in fact a paid job with a lot of scope for innovation and creativity.  

Examples of Hackathon  
There are primarily three categories of hackathons: Competitive hackathon, Sponsored hackathon and Internal hackathon. Here is a broad overview of these categories.  

Competitive hackathon: Hundreds of coders and programmers across the world sit in front of their laptops and computers and participate in what can be called a coding race. They can either work alone or in groups to hack through a set of coding challenges that, once cracked open, will help create a finished product. These hackers are usually freelancers, who, over a period of few days sustain this advanced competition and try to impress their prospective employers.  

Sponsored hackathon: Tech universities, global companies, Fortune 500 companies and certain non-profit organizations often conduct hackathons, their united goal being, finding and recruiting talented ethical hackers, the ones who can contribute significantly to the overall growth of their enterprises. In these hackathons, tech masterminds are required to solve both small and big problems with the help of coding. 

Internal hackathon: A number of companies organize hackathons internally as part of their team projects. This is called internal hackathon. Whenever employers sense a lack of enthusiasm among employees, they simply introduce these internal hackathons to shake things up, encourage faster rate of production and boost their problem-solving skills. Cybersecurity companies often make groups among their employees, where one group is asked to hack another’s server, who, in turn should protect their server from getting breached. A full-fledged internal hackathon has in some places even led to initiation of new business ideas.