Ethical Hacking is the process of attempting to penetrate computer systems, intrusion testing and networks with the intention of identifying weaknesses and vulnerabilities that could be exploited by malicious hackers. Any information uncovered is then used to improve the system's security and plug loopholes. Its a skill in high demand.
Ethical hacking involves the use of hacking tools, tricks, and techniques to identify vulnerabilities so as to ensure system security. It focuses on simulating techniques used by attackers to verify the existence of exploitable vulnerabilities in system security. Ethical hackers perform the security assessment of their organization with the permission of concerned authorities.
The Essential Skills Needed to become a master Hacker
- Basic Computer Skills (not just MS Word but using the command line, editing the registry and setting up a network.
- Networking Skills (e.g. understanding routers and switches, internet protocols, advanced TCP/IP, etc).
- Linux Skills (non-negotiable).
- Hacker Tools (e.g. Wireshark, TcpDump, Kali Linux, etc).
- Virtualization.
- Security Concepts and Technologies (e.g. SSL, IDS, firewalls, etc).
- Wireless Technologies.
- Scripting (e.g Perl, BASH, Windows PowerShell, etc).
- Database Skills (starting with SQL).
- Web Programming and Applications (how hackers target them).
- Digital Forensics.
- Cryptography (encryption).
- Reverse Engineering.
Best Resources for learning Ethical Hacking
Cybrary courses are totally free and cover a wide range of subjects, but you must pay if you want a certificate of completion, or to access the assessments and exams (approximately $99/month). The website is well organized with an option to select ethical hacking courses suitable for a specific career path, e.g. penetration tester or network engineer, and even create your own syllabus. You can search for courses by skill type, level, or certification. When you sign up, you will be directed to your dashboard, which displays the courses you've completed or are busy with, your certifications, and even posts you've published to the Cybrary community.
In this Ethical Hacking course, you will learn to write a Python script and use it to hack a system affected with Buffer Overflow. This Cybrary site is ideal if you want to build up a portfolio of knowledge, keep track of your progress, and ultimately choose one or more certifications.
This ethical hacking course covers the basics of white hat hacking including a detailed video on how to set up a lab and also the computer basics and introduction. You'll also get an introduction to Nmap and Metasploit tools and learn basic Windows and Linux commands. A fine touch is that below each video you can comment or post questions to the instructor or other students. All you need is a reliable internet connection and focus on the topics.
For the advanced hacker, EH Academy offers a wide range of specialized ethical hacking courses, most of them paid (ranging from $50 to $200), e.g: Using Python For Offensive Penetration Testing, Advanced Mobile Application Penetration Testing, OS Application Penetration Testing Training, Metasploit training for Penetration Testing & Ethical Hacking, and VoIP Hacking & Penetration Testing Training. You can take your hacking knowledge one step ahead through these courses.
Udemy provides an easily navigable portal to a wide range of ethical hacking courses, free and paid. Running a search on ethical hacking returns over 800 matches, more than 40 of them free. This is a very comprehensive ethical hacking course for absolute beginners with no previous knowledge of hacking or penetration testing. It focuses on the practical side of penetration testing but doesn't neglect the theory, e.g. how devices interact inside a network. You will first learn how to set up a testing lab on your own machine, and how to install the Kali Linux operating system. Don't worry if you're not familiar with Linux; you will quickly learn the basic commands you need to interact with the Kali Linux terminal. This course covers network penetration testing, gaining access, post-exploitation and web application penetration testing.
Coursera is one of the leading online learning platforms in the world. It offers free online college-level classes open to everyone. They are apparently more popular than cheese. They don't count towards degree credits but will be appreciated by future employers as degree-level training. The method of instruction is usually video but instructor's brains can be picked on virtual forums and during chat sessions. There are various types of assessments, from peer assessment to formal exams, depending on the course. Some of the courses have fixed schedules and most take between six to eight weeks to complete.
By the end of this ethical hacking course, you'll have a firm grasp of cryptographic primitives in wide use today and a knowledge of how to combine these in order to develop modern protocols for secure communication.
Books are the best supplement for learning anything well concisely. It will provide everything you need and make yourself a pro. Books are the best comprehensive reference and it will provide you the complete outline in brief. There are several books written by the experts which will help you to go through step-by-step. Make a start and shape up your plan to learn in a more efficient and effective way. For learning Ethical Hacking, you can take a look at: ''Best Books for learning Ethical Hacking".
