Ethical hacking involves a hacker agreeing with an organization or individual who authorizes the hacker to levy cyber attacks on a system or network to expose potential vulnerabilities. An ethical hacker is also sometimes referred to as a white hat hacker. Many depend on ethical hackers to identify weaknesses in their networks, endpoints, devices, or applications. The hacker informs their client as to when they will be attacking the system, as well as the scope of the attack. An ethical hacker operates within the confines of their agreement with their client. They cannot work to discover vulnerabilities and then demand payment to fix them. This is what gray hat hackers do. Ethical hackers are also different from black hat hackers, who hack to harm others or benefit themselves without permission.
Yes, ethical hacking is a good career because it is one of the best ways to test a network. An ethical hacker tries to locate vulnerabilities in the network by testing different hacking techniques on them. In many situations, a network seems impenetrable only because it hasn’t succumbed to an attack in years. However, this could be because black hat hackers are using the wrong kinds of methods. An ethical hacker can show a company how they may be vulnerable by levying a new type of attack that no one has ever tried before. When they successfully penetrate the system, the organization can then set up defenses to protect against this kind of penetration. This unique security opportunity makes the skills of an ethical hacker desirable for organizations that want to ensure their systems are well-defended against cybercriminals.
Ethical hackers are generally experts in programming, cybersecurity, security analysis, and networking infrastructure. Ethical hackers tend to be out-of-the-box thinkers. Many hackers rely on creative means of attack, such as social engineering. Those who are experts within systems, who can easily see flaws within systems, and who love repetitive but creative work (such as quality assurance) are well-suited to working as ethical hackers. Ethical hackers will usually know multiple programming languages and have expertise in a multitude of security tools. A recent graduate might study programming, quality assurance, and systems security to prepare for such a role.
Many ethical hackers are freelancers who work off something called "bug bounties." Bug bounties are small contracts that companies, often large companies, send out for finding errors within their products. An ethical hacker can make thousands of dollars by reporting a single bug within a system. Other ethical hackers work within applications development companies to ensure that their products are as secure as possible. Therefore, an ethical hacker may be a freelance hacker, a software engineer, or a security analyst. Ethical hackers may also be able to easily move into roles in cybersecurity, such as cybersecurity architects, cybersecurity administrators, and cybersecurity engineers.
Yes, ethical hacking is legal because the hacker has full, expressed permission to test the vulnerabilities of a system. An ethical hacker operates within constraints stipulated by the person or organization for which they work, and this agreement makes for a legal arrangement. An ethical hacker is like someone who handles quality control for a car manufacturer. They may have to try to break certain components of the vehicle such as the windshield, suspension system, transmission, or engine to see where they are weak or how they can improve them. With ethical hacking, the hacker is trying to “break” the system to ascertain how it can be less vulnerable to cyberattacks. However, if an ethical hacker attacks an area of a network or computer without getting expressed permission from the owner, they could be considered a gray hat hacker, violating ethical hacking principles.
The different types of hackers include white hat hackers who are ethical hackers and are authorized to hack systems, black hat hackers who are cybercriminals, and grey hat hackers, who fall in-between and may not damage your system but hack for personal gain. There are also red hat hackers who attack black hat hackers directly. Some call new hackers green hat hackers. These people aspire to be full-blown, respected hackers. State-sponsored hackers work for countries and hacktivists and use hacking to support or promote a philosophy. Sometimes a hacker can act as a whistleblower, hacking their own organization in order to expose hidden practices. There are also script kiddies and blue hat hackers. A script kiddie tries to impress their friends by launching scripts and download tools to take down websites and networks. When a script kiddie gets angry at another hacker and seeks retaliation, they then become known as a blue hat hacker.
In addition to proficiency in basic computer skills and use of the command line, ethical hackers must also develop technical skills related to programming, database management systems (DBMS), use of the Linux operating system (OS), cryptography, creation and management of web applications and computer networks like DHCP, NAT, and Subnetting. Becoming an ethical hacker involves learning at least one programming language and having a working knowledge of other common languages like Python, SQL, C++, and C. Ethical hackers must have strong problem-solving skills and the ability to think critically to come up with and test new solutions for securing systems. Ethical hackers should also understand how to use reverse engineering to uncover specifications and check a system for vulnerabilities by analyzing its code.
Many hackers use the Linux operating system (OS) because Linux is a free and open-source OS, meaning that anyone can modify it. It’s easy to access and customize all parts of Linux, which allows a hacker more control over manipulating the OS. Linux also features a well-integrated command-line interface, giving users a more precise level of control than many other systems offer. While Linux is considered more secure than many other systems, some hackers can modify existing Linux security distributions to use them as hacking software. Most ethical hackers prefer Linux because it's considered more secure than other operating systems and does not generally require the use of third-party antivirus software. Ethical hackers must be well-versed in Linux to identify loopholes and combat malicious hackers, as it’s one of the most popular systems for web server
If you’re interested in learning hacking skills or pursuing a career in ethical hacking, you’re in the right place.
The field of ethical hacking, also called penetration testing or pen testing, is a dynamic and fast-paced industry. Professional hackers constantly face new problems to solve, making this an exciting, challenging, and rewarding career path. This career requires you to be continually learning and studying to keep up with advancements in technology, cybersecurity, and hacking techniques. Becoming a skilled hacker can lead to a lucrative career in cybersecurity, as many large companies now hire ethical hackers to help keep their systems secure.
The best way for beginners to start hacking is to learn computer basics and get a fundamental understanding of computer networking. When you study to become an ethical hacker, you will learn about networks and networking protocols, programming languages such as Python and C, languages used in web applications like HTML and JavaScript, and components of the cloud and online infrastructure.
Hacking is gaining unauthorized access to a system. Hackers do this through a number of methods, which mainly fall into two categories: exploiting security vulnerabilities or weaknesses in the target system and exploiting the system users through social engineering. Therefore hacking can include both technical strategies and social engineering techniques — in which a hacker uses psychology to trick human users into opening malicious software or providing key information. In many cases, hacking involves a combination of the two.
Hacking can be legal or illegal, depending on the hacker’s motivations and whether they have permission from the device owner to hack it. Either way, hacking into a device is always considered “unauthorized” access, simply meaning that the hacker gained access to the system through unintended channels.
Illegal hacking is when a person uses hacking for a malicious purpose, such as to collect confidential information, compromise an organization’s success, or hold data for ransom as a method of financial gain.
Legal hacking, also known as penetration testing or ethical hacking, is when companies hire a person to purposefully hack into their computer systems as a way of revealing any existing vulnerabilities and devising solutions to make the systems more secure. An ethical hacker’s job is to combat and prevent malicious hackers from illegally accessing a company’s systems.
Hackers are often represented in the media as evildoers bent on stealing money and personal information from individuals and businesses. These types of hackers are referred to as black hat hackers in the cybersecurity world — they engage in hacking illegally and with malicious intent.
In reality, most hackers are simply people who love learning about computers and are doing their hacking legally, as a career in the cybersecurity field. Typically, these are categorized as white hat hackers. White hat hackers are ethical hackers, also called penetration testers. They have permission from the owners of the devices they hack and usually earn money from finding weaknesses and strengthening computer systems.
Hacking or pen testing requires both technical knowledge and an understanding of psychology and social engineering.
On the technical side, to become a professional hacker, you will need to learn about the following key topics (ordered by importance):
Basic IT and computer skills
Computer networking
Linux operating system (OS)
Web applications and websites
Programming
Cryptography
For beginners, you don’t need to worry about mastering all of these topics at once. Beginner’s courses will cover the necessary basics as you go through the course. With the right lessons, you’ll learn the above skills gradually while you learn hacking.