CH1 Introduction

2CEIT6PE7 - Ethical Hacking
Chapter 1
Introduction to Ethical Hacking
Text Books
CEH Certified Ethical Hacker Study Guide by Ric Messier
Reference Books
• Network Intrusion Alert:An Ethical Hacking Guide to Intrusion Detection by Ankit Fadia,
Manu Zacharia, Thomson Course Technology PTR
• Gray Hat Hacking: The Ethical Hacker's Handbook by Shon Harris
• Ethical Hacking, Thomas Mathew
• Hacking Exposed: Network Security Secrets & Solutions, Stuart McClure, Joel Scambray,
and George Kurtz, McGraw-Hill
What is Hacking?
• Hacking is an attempt to exploit a computer system or a private
network inside a computer. Simply put, it is the unauthorised
access to or control over computer network security systems for
some illegal purpose.
• Hacking is the process of gaining unauthorized access into a

computer system, or group of computer systems. This is done
through cracking of passwords and codes which gives access to the
systems.
• Hacking is the activity of identifying weaknesses in a computer

system or a network to exploit the security to gain access to
personal data or business data. An example of computer hacking
can be: using a password cracking algorithm to gain access to a
computer system.
Ethical Hacking
Our Security objectives are surrounding these three basic concepts:
• Data Breach
• Essential Terminology
• Elements of Information Security
Data Breach
eBay Data Breach
– eBay is well-known online auction platform that is widely used all over the
world.
– eBay announced its massive data breach in 2014 which contained sensitive
data.
– 145 million customers were estimated having data loss in this attack.
– According to eBay, the data breach compromised the following information
including:
• Customers' names
• Encrypted passwords
• Email address
• Postal Address
• Contact Numbers
• Date of birth
Data Breach
Google Play Hack
– A Turkish Hacker, “Ibrahim Balic” hacked Google Play twice.
– It was not his first attempt; he acclaimed that he was behind the Apple's
Developer site attack.
– He tested vulnerabilities in Google's Developer Console and found a flaw in

the Android Operating System, which he tested twice to make sure about it
causing crash again and again.
Data Breach
The Home Depot Data Breach
– Theft of information from payment cards, like credit cards is common
nowadays.
– In 2014, Home Depot’s Point of Sale Systems were compromised.
– A released statement from Home Depot on the 8th of September 2014

claimed breach of their systems.
– The attacker gained access to third-party vendors login credentials and

accessed the POS networks.
– Zero-Day Vulnerability exploited in Windows which created a loophole to

enter the corporate network of Home Depot to make a path from the third-
party environment to Home Depot’s network.
Essential Terminology
• Hack Value
– Hack value is the notion used by hackers to express that something is worth
doing or is interesting.
• Zero-Day Attack
– Zero-Day Attacks refers to threats and vulnerabilities that can exploit the
victim before the developer identify or address and release any patch for
that vulnerability.
• Vulnerability
– The vulnerability refers to a weak point, loophole or a cause in any system or
network which can be helpful and utilized by the attackers to go through it.
Any vulnerability can be an entry point for them to reach the target.
• Daisy Chaining
– Daisy Chaining is a sequential process of several hacking or attacking
attempts to gain access to network or systems, one after another, using the
same information and the information obtained from the previous attempt.
• Exploit
– Exploit is a breach of security of a system through Vulnerabilities, Zero-Day
Attacks or any other hacking techniques.
• Doxing
– The term Doxing refers to Publishing information or a set of information
associated with an individual. This information is collected publicly, mostly
from social media or other sources.
• Payload
– In information security, Payload is a section or part of a malicious and
exploited code that causes the potentially harmful activity and actions such
as exploit, opening backdoors, and hijacking.
• Bot
– The bots are software that is used to control the target remotely and to
execute predefined tasks. It is capable to run automated scripts over the
internet. The bots are also known as for Internet Bot or Web Robot.
Elements of Information Security
• Confidentiality
• Integrity
• Availability
• Authenticity
• Non-Repudiation
• We can use the term “CIA” to remember these basic yet most
important security concepts.
The Security, Functionality, and Usability Triangle
Motives, Goals, and Objectives of Information Security Attacks
• In the information security world, an attacker attacks the target

system with the three main components behind it.
Motives, Goals, and Objectives of Information Security Attacks
• Motives Behind Information Security Attacks:

– Disrupting business continuity
– Information theft
– Manipulating data
– Creating fear and chaos by disrupting critical infrastructures
– Propagating religious or political beliefs
– Achieving state's military objectives
– Damaging reputation of the target
– Taking revenge
(Something valuable – DATA or MONEY)

Information Security Attack
Advanced Persistent Threats
• An advanced persistent threat (APT) is the process of stealing
information by a continuous process.
• An Advanced Persistent Threat usually focuses on private

organizations or for political motives.
• The APT process relies upon advanced, sophisticated techniques to

exploit vulnerabilities within a system.
• The "persistent" term defines the process of an external command

and controlling system that is continuously monitoring and fetching
data from a target.
• Viruses and Worms
• A virus is a malicious executable code attached to another
executable file which can be harmless or can modify or delete
data. When the computer program runs attached with virus it
perform some action such as deleting a file from the computer
system. Virus can’t be controlled by remote.
• Worms is similar to virus but it does not modify the program. It

replicate itself more and more to cause slow down the computer
system. Worms can be controlled by remote. The main objective of
worms to eat the system resources.
Worm VIRUS
It is a form of malware that replicates It is a malicious executable code attached to
itself and can spread to different another executable file which can be harmless
computers via Network. or can modify or delete data.
The main objective: to eat the system The main objective: to modify the information.
resources.
It doesn’t need a host to replicate from It require host is needed for spreading.
one computer to another.
It is less harmful and Its spreading speed It is more harmful and Its spreading speed is
is faster. slower as compared.
Worms can be detected and removed by Antivirus software are used for protection
the Antivirus and firewall. against viruses.
Worms are executed via weaknesses in Viruses are executed via executable files and
system and controlled by remote can’t be controlled by remote.
Morris Worm, Storm Worm and SQL Resident and Non -resident viruses are two
Slammer are some of the examples of types of Virus.
worms.
Not needs human action to replicate. It needs human action to replicate.
Mobile Threats
• The most common threat to mobile devices are:
– Data leakage
– Unsecured Wi-Fi
– Network Spoofing
– Phishing Attacks
– Spyware
– Broken Cryptography
– Improper Session Handling
Insider Attack
Botnets
• A compound of the words robot and network, a botnet is a group
of remote-controlled computers coordinated together to perform
malicious tasks.
• A single botnet can comprise anywhere between a few hundred

and a few million computers, commonly referred to as bots (short
for robots).
• Botnets can gain access to your machine via a malicious software

installation, a direct hacker attack, or an automated program that
monitors the internet in search of security deficiencies (i.e. a lack
of antivirus protection) to exploit.
Information Security Threat Categories
• Network Threats
• Host Threats
• Application Threats
• Network Threats
– Information gathering
– Sniffing and eavesdropping
– Spoofing
– Session hijacking and Man-in-the-Middle attack
– DNS and ARP Poisoning
– Password-based attacks
– Denial-of-Service attack
– Compromised-key attack
– Firewall and IDS attacks
• Host Threats
– Malware attacks
– Footprinting
– Password attacks
– Denial-of-Service attacks
– Arbitrary code execution
– Unauthorized access
– Backdoor attacks
– Physical security threats
• Application Threats
– Improper data/Input validation
– Authentication and Authorization attacks
– Security misconfiguration
– Information disclosure
– Broken session management
– Buffer overflow attacks
– Cryptography attacks
– SQL injection
– Improper error handling and exception management
Hacker Types
White Hat Hackers
• White Hat hackers are also known as Ethical Hackers.
• They never intent to harm a system, rather they try to find out
weaknesses in a computer or a network system as a part of
penetration testing and vulnerability assessments.
• Ethical hacking is not illegal and it is one of the demanding jobs

available in the IT industry.
• There are numerous companies that hire ethical hackers for

penetration testing and vulnerability assessments.
Hacker Types
Black Hat Hackers
• Black Hat hackers, also known as crackers, are those who hack in
order to gain unauthorized access to a system and harm its
operations or steal sensitive information.
• Black Hat hacking is always illegal because of its bad intent which
includes stealing corporate data, violating privacy, damaging the
system, blocking network communication, etc.
Hacker Types
Grey Hat Hackers
• Grey hat hackers are those who work for both, black hat and white
hat hackers.
• They act without malicious intent but for their fun, they exploit a
security weakness in a computer system or network without the
owner’s permission or knowledge.
Hacker Types
Script Kiddies
• Script Kiddies is a person who lacks programming knowledge and
IT security skills and uses existing security tools to launch cyber-
attacks.
• The internet is full of security tools written by skilled programmers

and intended for computer security auditing and digital forensics.
• Many of these tools are free and even open source. Most of these
tools were not created for hacking purposes.
Hacker Types
Red Hat Hackers
• A Red Hat hacker sometimes refers to a person who targets Linux
based systems.
• However, in the hacking world, a Red Hat hacker plays a similar

role to a White Hat hacker in protecting IT systems from cyber-
attacks but from a different perspective.
• This group is considered the vigilantes of the hacker world. They

work by targeting Black Hat hackers to cease their criminal
activities or disclose their real identity to the public.
Hacker Types
Blue Hat Hackers
• They are much like the script kiddies; are beginners in the field of
hacking.
• If anyone makes angry a script kiddie and he/she may take

revenge, then they are considered as the blue hat hackers.
• Blue Hat hackers payback to those who have challenged them or

angry them.
• Like the Script Kiddies, Blue hat hackers also have no desire to
learn.
Hacker Types
Grey Hat Hackers
• These are the “newbies” in the world of hacking.
• Green hat hackers are not aware of the security mechanism and
the inner workings of the web, but they are keen learners and
determined to elevate their position in the hacker community.
• Although their intention is not necessarily to cause harm

intentionally, they may do so while “playing” with various malware
and attack techniques.
Hacking Concepts, Types, and Phases
• Hacker
Hacking Phases
• 1. Reconnaissance
• 2. Scanning
• 3. Gaining Access
• 4. Maintaining Access
• 5. Clearing Tracks

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2CEIT6PE7 - Ethical Hacking

• Hacking is the process of gaining unauthorized access into a

• Hacking is the activity of identifying weaknesses in a computer

– He tested vulnerabilities in Google's Developer Console and found a flaw in

– In 2014, Home Depot’s Point of Sale Systems were compromised.

– A released statement from Home Depot on the 8th of September 2014

– The attacker gained access to third-party vendors login credentials and

– Zero-Day Vulnerability exploited in Windows which created a loophole to

• In the information security world, an attacker attacks the target

• Motives Behind Information Security Attacks:

(Something valuable – DATA or MONEY)

• An Advanced Persistent Threat usually focuses on private

• The APT process relies upon advanced, sophisticated techniques to

• The "persistent" term defines the process of an external command

• Worms is similar to virus but it does not modify the program. It

• A single botnet can comprise anywhere between a few hundred

• Botnets can gain access to your machine via a malicious software

• Ethical hacking is not illegal and it is one of the demanding jobs

• There are numerous companies that hire ethical hackers for

• The internet is full of security tools written by skilled programmers

• However, in the hacking world, a Red Hat hacker plays a similar

• This group is considered the vigilantes of the hacker world. They

• If anyone makes angry a script kiddie and he/she may take

• Blue Hat hackers payback to those who have challenged them or

• Although their intention is not necessarily to cause harm

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