Despite the appealing title, ethical hacking or in more technical terms, “Penetration Testing” is not something you can master by reading an article or doing a crash course. There is much more to ethical hacking! In this article, we would have a look at what hacking is, the different types of hackers, steps involved in a hacking or penetration testing activity including common tools and techniques, how the industry looks at ethical hacking and the common certifications related to hacking.

Before we jump into the details, let us understand what a vulnerability is, because we would be using this term again and again. Vulnerability is any loophole or a weakness in the system that could be exploited by a hacker.

What is hacking and ethical hacking?

To understand hacking, let us first understand what a hacker does. Whenever we think of a hacker, we imagine a guy with a hood, sitting in a dark room, having multiple computer screens in front of him and typing something at a blazing speed! We hate to burst your bubble, but most hackers do not fit that preconceived stereotype! A computer hacker is a person with deep domain expertise in computer systems, who is well versed in various methods of overcoming defense mechanisms by exploiting vulnerabilities in a computer system or network. A hacker could be financially or politically motivated or could be working with an organization to help them strengthen their infrastructure.

Hacking refers to the activities that can overpower/derail the security mechanisms of digital devices like computers, smartphones, tablets, and even entire networks. It exploits the vulnerabilities present in the system or network to gain unauthorized access to confidential information. Hacking could be for personal benefit or with malicious intent.

However, in ethical hacking, the hacker exploits the vulnerability, gains access to the data, but never alters, deletes or uses it for personal or professional gain. The hacker, in this case, will disclose the vulnerability to the owner of the system with a “Proof of Concept” (PoC) and request the owner to get the vulnerability remediated. Generally, ethical hackers have explicit permission to exploit the target from the owner.

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