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Famous examples of such organizations include the Mafia, Crips, Yakuza and Triad.

Gangsters typically run their operations as a pseudo-business in that they do offer some product or service, albeit an illegal one, for paying customers, rather than outright theft, although they engage in plenty of that as well. For example during the prohibition era, gangsters monopolized the alcohol trade, in the 1950s it was gambling, and today it is narcotics. Other classic gangster endeavours include prostitution and charging local businesses "protection money" as if the gang were a private security firm, when in fact the payments are made solely to protect the business from the gangsters themselves and sometimes from other gangs. In other words indirect armed robbery or extortion. They frequently take over or wield undue influence in labor unions.

Gangsters also are known for attempting to manipulate the outcome of civil institutions, such as court cases and political elections, through bribery and intimidation. When gangsters become particularly powerful, they may eventually develop reciprocal relationships with law enforcement they have managed to corrupt. In this situation the police are handsomely paid off, and in exchange they ignore their patron's illicit activities, and may even assist them, by directly taking part in crimes, or by arresting competitors.

Today an Ebonics form of the word, "gangsta", has become associated with gangsta rap music. This style's lyrics are often based on living gang-related lifestyles, and can sometimes be portrayed in a realistic, gritty way, or in a cartoonish, exaggerated way.

Famous individual gangsters include:

• Al CaponeAlphonse Gabriel Capone ( January 17, 1899 January 25, 1947) more popularly known as Al 'Scarface' Capone was a famous American gangster in the 1920s and 1930s, although his business card is reported to have said he was a used furniture dealer. A Sicilian
• Dawood IbrahimMafioso Dawood Ibrahim (also known as Dawood Ebrahim and Sheikh Dawood Hassan is a powerful and notorious Indian Memon ( Sunni Muslim) Mafia kingpin. He started his career in Bombay by working for the Karim Lala gang and soon shifted residence to Dubai in
• John GottiJohn Gotti ( October 27, 1940 June 10, 2002) (also known as The Dapper Don and The Teflon Don was the boss of the Gambino family, New York's largest mafia family, and one of the most feared. Gotti started as a mob assassin and worked his way up to becomin
• Meyer LanskyMeyer Lansky (born Majer Suchowlinski ( July 4, 1902 January 15, 1983), was a Polish born gangster of Jewish parents. He was instrumental in the development of the American mafia. Lansky was born in Grodno in 1902. His family moved to the United States in
• Yip Kai KoonMafioso Yip Kai Koon is a famous Hong Kong gangster who was most active in the early 1980s. He and his gang specialized in robbing jewelry stores with assault rifles, especially the AK-47, which can be acquired easily from black markets hosted by triads.