Ethical hacking is a legal practice that allows professionals to penetrate networks and systems to identify vulnerabilities and threats that malicious attackers may find. This allows them to exploit the security architecture to bring down the entire security system. Penetration Testing is also known as Ethical Hacking. It aims to improve security of the network or system by fixing vulnerabilities discovered during testing. Ethical hackers use the exact same tools and methodologies as malicious hackers. They are however authorized to use these tools to improve security and protect the system from malicious attackers.
These are the skills you will need to become an ethical hacker.
1) Networking Skills: These skills are essential to becoming an ethical hacker. A computer network is a collection of computers connected together so they can share information. There are many types, including LAN (Local Area Networks), MAN(Metropolitan Area Networks), WAN (Wide Area Networks), that can be used for different purposes. An ethical hacker should be familiar with different network topologies, such as Bus topology and Star topology. Ethical hackers need to have a good understanding of networking in order to identify and fix any weaknesses or breaches in the network. You can take our CCNA course to learn computer networking.
2) Penetration Testing Skills. Ethical hackers need to be proficient in penetration testing, which helps to identify weaknesses in the system. Penetration testing allows ethical hackers mitigate weaknesses before they become actual attacks. The five-step process of penetration testing involves scanning, reconnaissance, gaining access, maintaining accessibility, and analysis using various tools such as Nmap and Wireshark. You can learn more about penetration testing by taking our Advanced Penetration Testing course.
3) Programming Skills. Programming skills allow you to communicate with computers and give instructions for a task called code. Computer programming skills combine technical elements with logical ones. Programming languages include C++, JAVA and PYTHON. We can also write code in HTML, PHP, JAVASCRIPT, HTML and C++. These programming languages are important for ethical hackers because they can contain vulnerabilities or errors.
4) Basic Hardware Skills. An ethical hacker must have a basic understanding about hardware, as it can lead to security breaches. An ethical hacker must understand how computers work, how USBs transmit data, and how CMOS and BIOS work together.
5) Cryptography Skills: An ethical hacker must have cryptography skills. Cryptography is a combination key (factors) with algorithm (logic) that are used to secure data. It can include a variety of technologies and methods to secure data such as encryption, hashing, digital signing, and decryption. Two types of encryption are used in cryptography: Symmetrical and Asymmetric. Symmetric encryption uses the same key to decrypt and encrypt, while in asymmetric encryption, both the sender and the receiver use different keys. Learn the basics of cryptography with our CEH v11 Certification Training Course.
6) Database Skills: DBMS (Database Management System) is a technique for creating and managing databases. Most hackers are looking to steal sensitive information from databases. An ethical hacker must be able to identify and fix security vulnerabilities in different databases, such as SQL, MySQL, and Oracle. DBMS skills allow you to perform all operations on a database, including creating, reading, updating, and deleting. Understanding DBMS will allow you to inspect systems for data integrity.
7) Social Engineering: This is the process of persuading people to reveal confidential information. I
