Top 10 Ethical Hacking Tools a Professional Hacker should Know

Though cyber-attack is a transient incidence, the consequences it brings, are not worth ignoring

Cybersecurity and ethical hacking are inseparable. Companies that are aware of the scale of cybercrime and the gravity of the consequences it generates, would definitely consider incorporating pen-testing into their operations. Though cyber-attack is a transient incidence, the consequences it brings upon the company's valuable data and the trust it holds, are not worth ignoring. It is a constantly evolving field, with new tricks invented the moment a cyber intrusion issue is resolved. Therefore, it makes an acute sense that IT departments be on their feet all the time equipped with the right ethical hacking tools included in their tech stacks. Here, we give you a low-down on the top 10 ethical hacking tools, you can choose from.

1. John The Ripper:

It is one of the frequently used security tools available to test password strength, which works on around 15 operating systems, including Windows, macOS, and Linux. A free tool, that makes for a versatile password cracking tool, as it combines different features into one package. This intelligent ethical hacking tool uses brute force technology to decode passwords and can change its password test algorithm accordingly.

2. Metasploit:

This is an open-source cyber-security project primarily used for discovering remote software vulnerabilities. As the Metasploit Framework is written in Ruby, it is easy to develop, test, and execute exploits, resulting in increased productivity of pen-testers. It can prioritize and demonstrate risk through closed-loop vulnerability validation, and measure security awareness through simulated phishing emails.

3. Nmap:

Also known as Network Mapper, this open-source tool is used widely to arrange disclosure tests and security reviews. The port-scan tool is its defining feature, using which it gathers information by sending raw packets to system ports. It listens for responses and determines if ports are open, closed, or filtered. This process is also known as port discovery or port enumeration.

4. Burp Suite hacking tool:

This is a Java-based web penetration framework, widely used by ethical hacking professionals to identify vulnerabilities and verify attack vectors for web-based applications. It basically acts as an interception proxy, which interprets all the requests and responses to and from the target web application. Apart from having basic functions, this tool comes with advanced functions such as a spider, a repeater, a decoder, a comparer, an extender, and a sequencer.

5. OWASP ZAP:

It is one of the popular Web-application penetration testing tools, used to test the vulnerability of web applications. A Java-based tool, which comes with a GUI graphical user interface, allows for tasks such as fuzzing, scripting, spidering, and proxying to test for remote attacks. As it is a Java tool, it is supported by most operating systems.

6. Wireshark:

An open-source tool that allows you to analyze network traffic in real-time. Wireshark is widely known for its sniffing technology, which can detect security problems in any network along with solving general networking problems. With Wireshark, it is possible to read and intercept results in human-readable formats, making it possible to identify threats in advance. It supports up to 5000 network protocols and is available for all major operating systems.

7. Hydra:

It is a parallelized password cracker that supports several security protocols. It is very easy to add modules to this tool as it utilizes a wide range of conventions, for example, Databases, Mail, SMB, LDAP, SSH, VNC, etc. This ethical hacking tool is capable of utilizing savage power and word reference assaults. Testers, using this tool, can quickly understand how vulnerable the network is.

8. Aircrack-NG:

Aircrack-NG is a Wi-Fi assessment security suite applied to in-home and corporate security examinations. Its basic functionality lies in catching system parcels; breaking them down and utilizing them to split Wi-Fi. This suite incorporates full help for 802.11 WEP and WPA-PSK systems with an extravagant terminal-based interface along with other amazing features like support for WPA migration mode, quick splitting pace, and reconciliation with outsider apparatuses.

9. Ettercap:

A comprehensive, 'man in the middle attack' suite comes with features that include sniffing live connections, and content filtering on the fly through a packet capture tool that can write packets back into the network. It has a GUI interface and command-line execution feature. Though it is primarily known for its network analysis for its ability to dissect protocols.

10. Iron WASP:

It is an open-source, GUI security tool, used for web application vulnerability and comes with features that are easy to understand. People with the right knowledge can create their own scanners using this framework. As it is developed using Python and Ruby, anyone who knows these languages can explore this platform thoroughly. For starters, it can prove to be a great tool to test their ethical hacking skills.

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