ETHICAL HACKING
LEARN ETHICAL HACKING
CHAPTER 1: DEFINITION OF ETHICAL
HACKING
 Ethical hacking is to scan vulnerabilities
and to find potential threats on a
computer or networks
 An ethical hacker finds the weak points
or loopholes in a computer, web
applications or network and reports them
to the organization
 Ethical hacking refers to offensive testing
of computer systems in order to find out
security-related loopholes.
 Loopholes = Vulnerabilities
ADVANTAGES OF ETHICAL HACKING
 This helps to fight against cyber
terrorism and to fight against national
security breaches.
 This helps to take preventive action
against hackers.
 This helps to build a system that prevents
any kinds of penetration by hackers.
 This offers security to banking and
financial establishments.
 This helps to identify and close the open
holes in a computer system or network.
DISADVANTAGE OF ETHICAL HACKING
 This may corrupt the files or data of an
organization.
 They might use information gained for
malicious use. Subsequently, trustful
programmers are expected to have
achievement in this framework.
 By hiring such professionals will
increase costs to the company.
 This technique can harm someone’s
privacy.
 This system is illegal.
TOP 5 REASONS WHY YOU NEED TO
1. Pays Well (More Than Well)
2. Highly In-Demand Skill
3. Help in Creating a Secure Internet for All
4. One Can Become a National Asset
5. Good to Learn Something New
CHAPTER 2: Importance and Legality of
Ethical Hacking
 Ethical Hacking is a method of
identifying weaknesses in computer
systems and computer networks to
develop countermeasures that protect the
weaknesses
 An Ethical hacker must get written
permission from the owner of the
computer system, protect the privacy of
the organization been hacked,
transparently report all the identified
weaknesses in the computer system to the
organization, and inform hardware and
software vendors of the identified
weaknesses.
 An Ethical hackers must abide by the
following rules:
o Get written permission from the
owner of the computer system
and/or computer network before
hacking.
o Protect the privacy of the
organization been hacked.
o Transparently report all the
identified weaknesses in the
computer system to the
organization.
o Inform hardware and software
vendors of the identified
weaknesses.
WHY ETHICAL HACKING
 Keeping information secure can protect
an organization’s image and save an
organization a lot of money.
 Fake hacking can lead to loss of business
for organizations that deal in finance.
LEGALITY OF ETHICAL HACKING
 Ethical Hacking is legal if the hacker
abides by the rules stipulated in the above
section on the definition of ethical
hacking
 Ethical hacking is not a criminal activity
The Acceptability of Ethical hacking
 Hacking was regarded as a form of
tinkering
 It was a process that involved making
changes to something in order to get
something new
Computer Crime Definition
 Defined by US Department of Justice as,
“any violations of criminal law that
involve a knowledge of computer
technology for their perpetration,
investigation or prosecution”
 Computer Crime = Cyber Crime
Common Cyber Crime
Computer Fraud: Intentional deception for personal
gain via the use of computer systems.
Privacy Violation: Exposing personal information
such as email addresses, phone number, account
details, etc. on social media, hacking a websites, etc.
Identity Theft: Stealing personal information from
somebody and impersonating that person.
Sharing copyrighted files/information: This
involves distributing copyright protected files such as
eBooks and computer programs etc.
Electronic funds transfer: This involves gaining an
un-authorized access to bank computer networks and
making illegal fund transfers.
Electronic money laundering: This involves the use
of the computer to launder money.
ATM Fraud: This involves intercepting ATM card
details such as account number and PIN numbers.
These details are then used to withdraw funds from the
intercepted accounts.
Denial of Service Attacks: This involves the use of
computers in multiple locations to attack servers with
a view of shutting them down.
Spam: Sending unauthorized emails. These emails
usually contain advertisements.
 CHAPTER 3: Roles, Responsibilities, and
Skills of an Ethical Hacker
ETHICAL HACKERS IN THE
CYBERWORLD
 Ethical Hacking is an authorized practice
of by-passing system security to identify
potential data breaches and threats in a
network
 Ethical Hackers aim to investigate the
system or network for weak points that
malicious hackers can exploit or destroy
 “It takes a thief to catch a thief”
Check for Key Vulnerabilities
 Injection attacks
 Changes in security settings
 Exposure of sensitive data
 Breach in authentication protocols
 Components used in the system or
network that may be used as access
points.
ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF AN
ETHICAL HACKER
Important Rules of Ethical Hacking
1. An ethical hacker must seek
authorization from the organization that
owns the system.
2. Determine the scope of their assessment
and make known their plan to the
organization.
3. Report any security breaches and
vulnerabilities found in the system or
network.
4. Keep their discoveries confidential
5. Erase all traces of the hack after checking
the system for any vulnerability
ETHICAL HACKING BENEFITS
 It’s potential to inform and improve and
defend corporate networks.
Skills Required to Become an Ethical Hacker
 Knowledge of programming
 Scripting knowledge
 Networking skills
 Understanding of databases
 Knowledge of multiple platforms like
Windows, Linux, Unix, etc.
 The ability to work with different
hacking tools
 Knowledge of search engines and
servers.
CHAPTER 4: Process and Phases of Ethical
Hacking
1ST Phase: RECONNAISSANCE
 also called as Footprinting and
information gathering Phase
 hacker gathers information about a target
before launching an attack
 hacker finds valuable information
 Footprinting (method that used for
collecting data from target system)
o Finding out specific IP addresses
o TCP and UDP services
o Identifies vulnerabilities
Two Types of FootPrinting
 Active - Directly interacting with the
target to gather information about the
target.
 Passive - Trying to collect the
information about the target without
directly accessing the target. To this
purpose, hacker can use social media,
public websites etc.
2ND Phase: SCANNING
 hackers are probably seeking any
information that can help them perpetrate
attack
Basically, at this stage, four types of scans are
used:
 Pre-attack - Hacker scans the network
for specific information based on the
information gathered during
reconnaissance.
 Port Scanning/Sniffing - This method
includes the use of dialers, port scanners,
and other data-gathering equipment.
 Vulnerability Scanning - Scanning the
target for weaknesses/vulnerabilities.
 Information Extraction – Hacker
collects information about ports, live
machines and OS details, topology of
network, routers, firewalls, and servers.
3RD Phase: GAINING ACESS
 First he designs the network map and
then he has to decide how to carry out the
attack
 the hacker has the information he needs.
4TH Phase: MAINTAINING ACESS
 Once a hacker has gained access, they
want to keep that access for future
exploitation and attacks.
 The hacker secures access to the
organization’s Rootkits and Trojans
5th Phase: CLEARING TRACKS
 An intelligent hacker always clears all
evidence so that in the later point of time,
no one will find any traces leading to
him/her. He/she does this by:
o Clearing the cache and cookies
o Modifying registry values
o Modifying/corrupting/deleting
the values of Logs
o Clearing out Sent emails
o Closing all the open ports
o Uninstalling all applications that
he/she be used
CHAPTER 5: Hackers and Its Types
HACKER
 A hacker is an individual who uses
computer, networking or other skills to
overcome a technical problem.
TYPES OF HACKERS
Black Hat: Criminals Hackers
 A black hat hacker is a cybercriminal
who breaks into computer systems with
malicious or criminal intent.
 Motives: To profit from data breaches
 Who’s most at risk: Black hat hackers
pose the most risk to organizations.
White Hat: Authorized Hackers
 White hat hackers are authorized to hack
these systems for the purpose of spotting
security vulnerabilities before a criminal
hacker can
 Motives: Help businesses prevent
cybersecurity attacks
 Who’s most at risk: Criminal hackers
Grey Hat: “Just for Fun” Hackers
 A cybersecurity expert who finds ways to
hack into computer networks and
systems, but without the malicious intent
of a black hat hacker.
 Motives: Personal enjoyment
 Who’s most at risk: Anyone who
doesn’t want unauthorized access to their
systems and networks
Script Kiddies: Ametuer Hackers
 Amateur hackers that don’t possess the
same level of skill or expertise as more
advanced hackers in the field.
 Motives: To cause disruption
 Who’s most at risk: Organizations with
unsecured networks and systems
Green Hat: Hackers-in-Training
 Someone who is new to the hacking
world but is intently focused on
increasing their cyberattack skills
 Motives: To learn how to become an
experienced hacker
 Who’s most at risk: No one (yet)
Blue Hat: Authorized Software Hackers
 Hired by organizations to bug-test a new
software or system network before it’s
released.
 Motives: To identify vulnerabilities in
new organizational software before it’s
released.
 Who’s most at risk: Criminal hackers
Red Hat: Government-Hired Hackers
 Hired by government agencies to spot
vulnerabilities in security systems, with a
specific focus on finding and disarming
black hat hackers
 Motives: To find and destroy black hat
hackers
 Who’s most at risk: Black hat hackers
State/Nation Sponsored Hackers: International
Threat Prevention
 State/nation sponsored hackers are
appointed by a country’s government to
gain access to another nation’s computer
systems.
 Motives: To monitor and prevent
international threats
 Who’s most at risk: International hackers
and criminals
Malicious Insider: Whistleblower Hackers
 Malicious insider hackers are individuals
who employ a cyberattack from within
the organization they work for.
 Motives: To expose or exploit an
organization’s confidential information
 Who’s most at risk? Internal executives
and business leaders
Hacktivists: Politically Motivated Hackers
 Someone who hacks into government
networks and systems to draw attention
to a political or social cause
 Motives: To shed light on an alarming
social or political cause (or to make a
political or ideological statement)
 Who’s most at risk: Government
agencies
Elite Hackers: The Most Advanced Hackers
 Elite hackers are the cream of the crop in
the world of cybercriminals, and are
considered to be the highest skilled
hackers in their field
 Motives: To perform advanced
cyberattacks on organizations and
individuals
 Who’s most at risk: High-revenue
corporations
Cryptojackers: Cryptocurrency Mining
Hackers
 Known to exploit network vulnerabilities
and steal computer resources as a way to
mine for cryptocurrencies
 Motives: Cryptocurrency mining
 Who’s most at risk: Any individual or
organization with unsecured networks
Gaming Hackers
 Someone who focuses their hacking
efforts on competitors in the gaming
world.
 Motives: To compromise gaming
competitors
 Who’s most at risk: High-profile
gamers
Botnets: Large-Scale Hackers
 Botnet hackers are malware coders who
create bots to perform high-volume
attacks across as many devices as
possible
  Motives: To compromise a high volume
of network systems
 Who’s most at risk: Individuals with
unsecured routers and WiFi-connected
devices
Common Hacking Techniques
Phishing
 The criminal hacker creates a fraudulent
email that appears to come from a
legitimate organization and prompts the
user to open it.
Viruses and Malicious Code
 A hacker inserts malicious code,
including worms and Trojan horses, into
website files, often with the intent to steal
cookies that track a user's online activity.
User Interface (UI) Redress
 This technique, also known as
clickjacking, creates a fake UI and link
on top of an authentic webpage and tricks
the user into clicking on the link.
DoS and DDoS
 These techniques make it impossible for
users to access their computer systems,
networks, services or other information
technology (IT) resources
Domain Name System (DNS) Cache Poisoning
 This technique, also known as DNS
spoofing, exploits DNS clients and web
servers by diverting internet traffic to
fake servers.
Structured Query Language (SQL) injection
 This technique adds SQL code to a web
form input box in order to gain access to
unauthorized resources and data.
Keylogger Injection
 A keylogging program is injected into the
user's system as malware to monitor and
record each of the user's keystrokes.
Brute Force attack
 These attacks commonly use automated
tools to guess various combinations of
username and password until they find
the correct combination.
Types of Hacking
Website Hacking
 Hacking a website means taking
unauthorized control over a web server
and its associated software such as
databases and other interfaces.
Network Hacking
 Hacking a network means gathering
information about a network by using
tools like Telnet, NS lookup, Ping,
Tracert, Netstat, etc. with the intent to
harm the network system and hamper its
operation.
Email Hacking
 It includes getting unauthorized access
on an Email account and using it without
taking the consent of its owner.
Ethical Hacking
 Ethical hacking involves finding
weaknesses in a computer or network
system for testing purpose and finally
getting them fixed.
Password Hacking
 This is the process of recovering secret
passwords from data that has been stored
in or transmitted by a computer system.
Computer Hacking

 This is the process of stealing computer

ID and password by applying hacking
methods and getting unauthorized access
to a computer system.