How To Become An Ethical Hacker

-What is Ethical Hacking?

Ethical Hacking?? Don’t have any idea about ethical hacking, so firstly we should know what is hacking?
Hacking is a process or an attempt which helps in the exploitation of a computer system or a private network of a computer. In, simple words we can say that it is the control over or the unauthorized access over the computer network security system for some purpose.
And the person who performs hacking is known as a Hacker(who are intelligent and highly skilled in computers)..
Now, Hackers are of many types which consists of Black Hat Hacker, White Hat hacker and Grey Hat Hacker.
Black Hat Hackers hack to take control over the system for there personal gains.
Grey Hat Hackers helps the people who are curious about the computer language skills to enable them to hack a system so that the potential loopholes in the network security system can be located. They are different from Black hat hackers because they notify the admin of the network system about the threats and weaknesses discovered in the system.
Finally, White Hat Hackers are the hackers who are expertise and professionals in penetration testing or cybersecurity field. These hackers are certified or authorized to hack the systems.
These White Hat Hackers are also known as Ethical Hackers(Hackers performing Ethical Hacking).
Ethical Hacking is an authorized attempt to gain an unauthorized access or control over the computer system, data or application. Actions of malicious attackers and the duplicating strategies are involved in the ethical hacking.

-Why is information security important?

Information security performs four important roles :
1) It helps in protecting the organization’s functional ability.
2) It enables the applications implemented on the IT systems of an organization for safe operation.
3) It helps in protecting the data that is collected and used by the organization.
4) The technology used by the organization is safeguarded by the information security..

-Role of an Ethical hacker.

An ethical hacker do the bypass of a system’s security or defences as a malicious hacker, but the ethical hacker does not take advantage of any vulnerabilities they find rather than they give advice on how the company can fix the errors and improve the overall security.

-Skills required to become an Ethical hacker.

1- computer basics
2- networking
3- programming logics
4- basics understanding of web pages and it’s technology
5- expertise in Linux machine recommended Kali and parrot
6- familiar with various operating system e.g Windows , Linux , Mac os x
7- microprocessor and assembly language ( for software hacking)
8 – social engineering tactics
9- cryptography
10- SQL

-What is the attraction of an Ethical Hacking career?

An Ethical hacker is someone who gets hired by the company to come in and perform penetration and vulnerability testing for the benefit of the company which will help in the increase of security, as opposed to the non-ethical hacker who is going in for the financial gain or to do damage to the company.

-Starting up with Ethical Hacking?

Basically, starting a career in cyber security after 12th is one of the best decision you would take for your career. One can start up his/her career in ethical hacking as it does not require advanced programming skills as most of the work or data penetration or pen testing you do is via various tools not your own programs which you mainly run on Linux, but you should have the basic knowledge of the programming skills, as you need to make some minor tweeks in those tools as per your own requirement. Also, you should have the networking skills as, networking is the backbone of the cyber security.

-How much does a certified ethical hacker make?

The salary of the certified ethical hacker varies by position, organization, location and experience.
Salary based on the Experience(no. of years) :-
-Entry-level(0-5 years) – $50,000 – $100,000
-Junior(5-10 years) – $100,000 – $120,000
-Senior(10 years+) – $120,000+
If the person has passed CEH exam and is a certified penetration tester upto 10 percent then his/her salary will be incremented by 9 percent of the above salaries.
In San Francisco ethical hackers are paid highest and the lowest by firms in Minneapolis.

-These are the 10 basic steps going for ethical hacking…

Steps to become an ethical hacker…
Step 1:- Get Hands-on linux/unix :-
Unix/linux is an open source operating system which provides a better security to the computer systems. One of the most used OS for hacking which provides ample tools for hackers is LINUX so there is no skipping in sense of being a hacker. Some Linux distributions which are commonly used by hackers are Kali Linux, Red Hat Linux, Backtrack, Ubuntu, etc. Kali Linux is the specially customized and most used Linux system for hacking.
Step 2:- Learn C programming :-
Learning C language is like learning the mother of all the programming languages. For learning UNIX/LINUX C programming is the base as this OS is completely written in C. For gaining masters, C programming is something that you should aim as it provides you the power to blend the open-source OS Linux in the way you want. Also, you can try more than one programming languages. As an hacker, you should have a very good knowledge of at least 2-3 programming languages.
Step 3:- Learn how to be Anonymous :-
This is one of the important step that you should know as an hacker. You might do a lot of things as an hacker, some might be legal and some might be without permission. Thus it is necessary to know how to be anonymous and how one can hide his/her identity online, so that no one can backtrack you as there would be only one trace left.
Step 4:- Learn networking concepts :-
Being good at networking concepts and understanding how the networks are created is an important and essential step in becoming a hacker. Having knowledge of various networks and protocols since it is beneficial in exploiting vulnerabilities. Thus learning Wireshark, Nmap, etc are various networking tools and networking concepts which will be really beneficial.
Step 5:- Explore the hidden web :-
The dark web is the part of internet which is not visible to the search engines and which requires the use of an anonymizing browser called as Tor,etc for being accessed. You would have heard that the dark web is the “hotbed of criminal activities” – and it is. But in dark web not everything is illegal, it also has a legitimate side. Thus it is necesaary to know a bit about dark web – what it is and how it works.
Step 6:- Add the art of secret writing to your skill set :-
Art of secret writing is also known as Cryptography, and it is something you must maser as an hacker. Decryption and Encryption are the important skills in hacking. Authentication, confidentiality and integrity of data are several aspects of information security in which Encryption is widely used. Information on a network such as passwords, packets sent over the network, etc is always encrypted. Thus, as an hacker, it is necessary to identify the encryption and break it.
Step 7:- Dive Deep into Hacking :-
Once you have good knowledge of all the above topics discussed, it’s time to dive deep. Trying diving deep into hacking concepts and learning topics such as penetration testing,SQL injections, vulnerability and much more. As Security changes everyday with new new updates in the system, thus learning is never ending in the field of hacking. Thus, you should always be updated with the latest tools and ways to secure a system.
Step 8:- Explore vulnerabilities :-
System will bend the knee with only a single vulnerability. One should keep practicing them in various environments and various scenarios.
Step 9:- Experimenting and practicing is the key :-
Sit back and nail them after learning some concepts. Keep practicing in various scenarios and various environments.
Step 10:-Join discussion and meet the hackers :-
The most important thing for a hacker is to join forums or is to make a community which will help you to join the discussions with other hackers in the world. This will help in sharing and exchanging the knowledge and work as a team. Facebook, Telegram, Discord and many more platforms are available through which you can join various communities.

I hope this information will be useful to everyone….. Good Luck!!..s