What is ethical hacking? A guide for beginners

In our introduction to ethical hacking, we look at what the practice involves, why it’s important, and how you can get started with learning the essential skills.

Data plays an essential role in our lives. We each consume and produce huge amounts of information each day, and it very well may be utilized in enterprises as various as medical services, banking, advertising, and some more. Be that as it may, such delicate data should be ensured, which is the place where moral hacking proves to be handy. Yet, what is moral hacking? 

Here, we take a closer look at the practice, including what it is, why it’s useful, and how you can learn ethical hacking. We’ll also explore some of the job roles and salaries available to those with the necessary hacking skills. 

What is hacking? 

Before we get into ethical hacking, let’s look at one of the key concepts that underlie the practice. In basic terms, hacking is the process of gaining unapproved admittance to information that is hung on a PC, framework or organization.

Programmers, or the people who work on hacking, will get to frameworks such that the maker or holder didn't plan. Albeit the common undertone of hacking and programmers is a negative one, it can really be an advantageous cycle, as we will see.

What is ethical hacking?

Moral hacking is the cycle where an expert programmer lawfully and intentionally attempts to break into the PCs and gadgets of an association. In doing as such, moral programmers can test the association's safeguards, featuring any weaknesses in their frameworks and organizations.

Obviously, it's an itemized and generally expected complex interaction, with various components to consider. A moral programmer, here and there known as a white-cap programmer, will search for shortcomings in a wide range of ways. They will likewise play out an assortment of different errands connected to general network safety. This can include: 

• Assessing vulnerabilities
• Penetration testing 
• Gathering intelligence about entry points
• Scanning infrastructures to spot weaknesses 
• Accessing systems/networks and exploiting vulnerabilities 
• Hiding their access and evading detection 
• Compiling reports and analysis for the attempts 

What is penetration testing? 

You’ll often see the terms ‘ethical hacker’ and ‘penetration tester’ or ‘pen tester’ used interchangeably. Be that as it may, contingent upon where you look, there are a few contrasts to note.

As we investigate in our open advance regarding the matter, infiltration testing is a sort of test that assists with recognizing what sorts of assaults a framework is defenseless against. It includes purposefully attempting to assault the framework to track down its shortcomings and devise ways of guarding them.

Penetration testing vs ethical hacking 

So, what’s the difference between these two terms? While the term ethical hacking can be used to describe the overall process of assessing, performing, testing, and documenting based on a host of different hacking methodologies. Penetration testing is just one tool or process within ethical hacking. 

Why is ethical hacking important? 

We now know what ethical hacking is, but why can computer hacking be so beneficial? Essentially, by intentionally figuring out exploits and weaknesses in an organisation’s computer networks, it’s possible to fix them before an unethical hacker can take advantage of them. 

Ethical programmers work to assist associations with distinguishing and kill dangers by further developing the general IT security of the association. Along these lines, in a period where delicate information is put away across a wide range of organizations, organizations, and servers, it's fundamental to secure it. White-cap (moral) programmers help to recognize takes advantage of that could be taken advantage of by dark cap (unscrupulous/pernicious) programmers.

Obviously, it's not simply information that is in question with regards to cybercrime. A 2020 report by the Center for Strategic and International Studies and security programming organization McAfee observed that cybercrime misfortunes add up to around 522 billion of every 2018. They property these increasing expenses to better revealing, just as more powerful hacking procedures.

Just as the deficiency of information and cash, cybercrime can hurt public wellbeing, harm economies, and sabotage public safety. Obviously, it's fundamental to ensure associations and their information, and moral hacking can assume a urgent part in this assurance.

The basics of ethical hacking

Let’s take a look at a more detailed introduction to ethical hacking. While we won’t go deep into the technical details of how to hack, we’ll look at some of the roles, responsibilities, and salaries relevant to the field. We’ll also include links to courses and resources that can provide more technical information on how ethical hacking works. 

Types of ethical hacking 

Given how complex IT systems can be, it’s not surprising that there are many different ways to exploit them. As such, there are several ethical hacking methods and essential areas that a professional might use. Below, we’ve highlighted some of the most common types of ethical hacking: 

• Web application hacking. Web applications are shared over a network (such as the internet or an intranet) and are sometimes browser-based. Although convenient, they can be vulnerable to scripting attacks, and ethical hackers test such weaknesses. 
• Web server hacking. Web servers run operating systems and applications that host web pages and connect to back-end databases. There are potential weak points at each point of this process, which ethical hackers must test, identify, and recommend fixes. 
• Wireless network hacking. We’re all familiar with wireless networks – a group of computers that are wirelessly connected to a central access point. However, with this convenience comes a variety of potential security flaws that white-hat hackers must look for.  
• System hacking. Accessing a secure network is one thing, but system hacking focuses on gaining access to individual computers on a network. Ethical hackers will try and do precisely this while also suggesting appropriate countermeasures.
• Social engineering. While the other methods focus on accessing information through computers, systems and networks, social engineering targets individuals. Often, this means manipulating people to hand over sensitive data or provide access without them suspecting ill intent.

Types of ethical hacking jobs 

There are several roles associated with ethical hacking, the scope of which can vary depending on your area of expertise and the organisation/sector you’re working in. Some of the most popular ethical hacking jobs include: 

• Penetration tester. As mentioned previously, pen testers perform authorised tests on computers and networks to identify weaknesses. Penetration testers will often specialise in one particular type of system. 
• Computer crime investigator. This role focuses more on what happens after data breaches take place. They investigate a wide range of crimes, from hacking to other types of illegal activity. 
• Data security analyst. A data or cyber security analyst is usually an in-house role that focuses on identifying potential weaknesses within an IT system. They will then implement measures to prevent breaches, such as creating firewalls and encryption. 
• Network administrator. This role also focuses on maintaining computer networks and solving any problems they encounter. As well as installing and configuring networks, they help identify and solve any issues that occur within systems.