Most Notorious Hacking Groups in the World

Introduction:

Some hacking groups have attracted significant attention in the online world’s vague spaces, primarily due to their notable cases of cyber intrusions or ideological motivations. The realms of cybersecurity and global geopolitics have been considerably impacted by a variety of actors, such as state-sponsored entities and hacktivists, leaving a lasting imprint.

Presented below are the top 10 hacking groups in the world that are widely renowned for their boldness, expertise, and notable undertakings:

1. Anonymous

Anonymous, a hacktivist group, is widely acknowledged as one of the most prominent groups in this domain. Operating in a decentralized manner, it has taken accountability for a multitude of cyber-attacks targeting governmental, religious, and business online platforms in order to complete its hidden sentimental motive.

Anonymous

2. Lizard Squad

Renowned for their prominent Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks, especially on the gaming networks. They effectively disrupted the operations of prominent gaming networks, such as Sony’s PlayStation Network and Microsoft’s Xbox Live, causing temporary shutdowns in the year 2014.

Lizard Squad

3. APT28 (Fancy Bear)

This group, widely speculated to have affiliations with the Russian government, has been implicated in cyber-attacks targeting the Democratic National Committee (DNC) during the 2016 United States elections.

4. Lazarus Group

Reportedly supported by the government of North Korea, this group is linked to a range of activities involving cyber espionage and cyber-warfare, notably including the well-known cyber attack on Sony Pictures.

Lazarus Group

5. Equation Group

It is widely acknowledged that there exists a perception that this particular entity is an offshoot of the United States National Security Agency (NSA), and it has been implicated in numerous instances of cyber espionage on an international scale.

Equation Group

6. Shadow Brokers

The aforementioned collective garnered attention due to its dissemination of highly advanced hacking tools, purportedly originating from the Equation Group. Subsequently, these tools assumed a substantial part in the proliferation of cyber-attacks, such as the notorious WannaCry incident.

Shadow Brokers

7. APT1 (Comment Crew)

APT1, which is affiliated with the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, has been implicated in engaging in cyber-espionage endeavors aimed against crucial sectors across multiple nations.

APT1 (Comment Crew)

8. Syrian Electronic Army (SEA)

The Syrian Electronic Army (SEA) has initiated cyber-attacks on media establishments perceived as antagonistic towards the Syrian government, garnering support for President Bashar al-Assad.

Syrian Electronic Army (SEA)

9. Carbanak (Anunak)

With a specific emphasis on financial institutions, this hacking group has assumed responsibility for illicitly acquiring more than one billion dollars from numerous banks across the globe. This hacking group dedicatedly based in Russia has several cases running throughout the world for looting many banks and financial institutions with billions of dollars and hefty amounts in their local currencies.

Carbanak (Anunak)

10. DarkHotel

A notorious cyber gang from North Korea is highly famous for its specialized network cybercrime focusing on high-profile hotel and hotel-chain networks. In addition, this aforementioned gang strategically focuses on business executives by leveraging hotel networks, frequently employing advanced techniques, and exploiting zero-day vulnerabilities. The origins and motives of the subject under investigation continue to be enveloped in darkness.

DarkHotel

11. APT36 or Transparent Tribe

The Transparent Tribe, also known as APT-36, or Earth Karkaddan, is a highly sophisticated persistent threat group that is believed to be based in Pakistan. Its primary objective is to target users employed by Indian government organizations. The operations of this group have been attentively monitored by Craw Security throughout 2022.

APT36 or Transparent Tribe

12. APT33 or Elfin Team

APT33, also known as Elfin, or FireEye, is a cyber espionage group operating since at least 2013 dedicatedly based in Iran. In addition, it is a hacker group identified by FireEye as being supported by the government of Iran.

Specifically, the group has targeted organizations in the USA, Saudi Arabia, and South Korea that are involved in a variety of industries, with a particular focus on the aviation and energy sectors.

APT33 or Elfin Team

13. APT30

This hacking group widely known as APT30 is currently under investigation for possible ties to the Chinese government. Despite the fact that Naikon and APT30 share some properties, it does not appear that the two groups are very similar to one another.

APT30

14. APT29 or Cozy Bear

The Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) has been identified as the organization responsible for the threat group known as APT29. They have been active since at least 2008, and they frequently target research institutes, think tanks, and government networks in nations that are members of NATO and Europe. According to reports, APT29 began to penetrate the Democratic National Committee sometime around the summer of 2015.

The SolarWinds Compromise was attributed to the SVR by the governments of the United States and the United Kingdom in April of 2021. Public statements made by these governments included references to APT29, Cozy Bear, and The Dukes. Additionally, the actors involved in this campaign were identified as UNC2452, NOBELIUM, StellarParticle, Dark Halo, and SolarStorm in the reporting that was done by the industry.

APT29 or Cozy Bear

15. APT2 or PLA Unit 61486 or Putter Panda

PLA Unit 61486, sometimes referred to as Putter Panda or APT2, is a unit of the People’s Liberation Army that is committed to launching cyberattacks against firms in the United States of America, Japan, and Europe that are primarily concerned with satellite and communication technologies. As part of China’s drive to steal trade and military secrets from international targets, this particular unit is a participant in the campaign.

APT2 or PLA Unit 61486 or Putter Panda

16. APT1 or PLA Unit 61398 or Comment Panda

PLA Unit 61398 (also known as APT1, Comment Crew, Comment Panda, GIF89a, or Byzantine Candor; Chinese: 61398部队, Pinyin: 61398 bùduì) is the Military Unit Cover Designator (MUCD) of a People’s Liberation Army advanced persistent threat unit that has been asserted to be an origin of Chinese computer hacking attackers. Since the year 2002, the intelligence agencies of the United States have highlighted the presence of the unit, which is based in Pudong, Shanghai.

APT1 or PLA Unit 61398 or Comment Panda

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Most Notorious Hacking Groups in the World [2026]

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