Introduction to Ethical Hacking

Due to explosive growth of internet, we are living in the age where everything is connected to each other. Many systems like E-commerce and Distributed computing can get easy access to vast reference material. Consequently there is a malicious side of increasing technology that includes unethical activities of malicious hackers. They are the most dangerous threat to the information systems. Because of this security of the information system is the prime concern in cyber space.

To control the threat of an attack, many enterprises and organizations are hiring the ethical hackers, also known as Penetration Testers or White Hat hackers. Penetration Testers are nothing but the hackers. The only difference between Penetration Tester and malicious hacker is of mind-set. The tools, techniques and tricks performed by the both of them are one and the same, except one thing, Ethics, i.e. for good purpose. Ethical hacking is legal. It is performed with target’s permission.

‘Systems can be better secured only if vulnerabilities are discovered from view-point of the hacker’, is the intension of the ethical hacking. And Penetration testing is nothing but the application of ethical hacking for practical purpose. It is a legal and authorized attempt to find the vulnerability and exploit it for the purpose of making the information system more secure. It also involves providing Proof of Concept to prove that vulnerabilities are real, as well as, the recommendations for fixing them. Thus it helps to secure the system form upcoming attacks.