Ethical Hacking: Introduction to the Forces of Digital Peace

Is humanity intrinsically good? An informed answer would require assessing the entire history of men. Even then, the response would be subjective, as the issue of right and wrong still is not resolved. It is rather curious that, being around for quite a while, society is yet to clearly define the true meaning of good and bad.

Nonetheless, people’s talent for turning negative into positive cannot be denied. Horrible past events are used as examples via which we can educate ourselves. Ancient stories with gruesome finales are now books, plays, and movies that teach us. Tragic incidents became rules and regulations that help save human lives. Thus, in reality, goodness is not something we are born with. It takes time and experience, and it is something to be learned.

A great example from modernity is ethical hacking. Malicious cyber-attacks pose a serious threat to any person. Leaking private data, sharing sensitive information, losing jobs, and disrupting everyday happenings are only the tip of the iceberg. So how was the resultant chaos transformed into something good? Here, the answer is simple – applying the same principles but for a different, well-intended outcome.

Ethical Hacking – Definition and Evolution

Malicious, or black-hat, hackers are known as those who use their skills to gain unauthorized access to digital assets/commuting services in order to exploit them. The motivation for such action can range from financial gain to merely ‘fame.’ On the other hand, ethical hackers are professionals using their expertise to help strengthen applications and infrastructures.

Ethical hackers (EH) are employed by organizations and businesses to find vulnerabilities by infiltrating networks and trying to break software products. The core mission is to detect potential data breaches and/or threats currently present so as to improve security.

Cyber security engineers are not provided with all data to let them bypass a defense system – that would defeat the whole purpose. In turn, they are given official permission to breach protected computing resources, but the process of penetration is similar to illegal hacking. The results are analyzed and reported to the company that hired the EH in order to fortify its systems and withstand/divert malicious attacks.

Ethical Hacking Timeline

• Interestingly, ‘hacking’ as a term was popularized in the 1960s in relation to MIT procedures. It denoted using inventive engineering techniques to make equipment more efficient by ‘hacking’ it.
• In the 1970s, corporations and governments began forming ‘tiger teams’ comprising bright individuals that would find flaws in telecommunications and computer systems.
• The following two decades saw a rise in the number of personal computers. Thus, the original white-hat hacking was flipped upside-down to use mostly for personal profit. These digital trespassers had a lot of ‘recognition’ in the media. The practice became infamous and inspired more to join (as well as encouraged a handful of movies).
• Further, with more and more businesses going online and soaring social media activity, hacking-as-a-service emerged. Again, HaaS is usually related to malignant actions. Dark web users offer their foul artistry for hire, doing anything for the right price. However, this entire problem opened new opportunities.
• Particularly, in 1995, ethical hacking became a legitimized profession. After 2001, the push to protect digital assets encouraged businesses to pay more attention to their cybersecurity.
• Around the same time, organizations with the mission to educate information security experts emerged. This further reinforced the title of an ethical hacker. And so, ethical hacking made a full circle only to bring more security and efficiency.

Now, ethical hackers are revered and use their mastery to help people and businesses.

What Is Penetration Testing and Why Is It Important?

Ethical Hacking as a Service

With the steady growth of e-commerce, digital transformation is now skyrocketing. According to Forbes, online spending is up by 55% compared to 2020, which is $609 billion more than 2 years ago. And the numbers are still climbing. With this trend, in 2021, the FBI Internet Crime Report stated that cybercrime losses neared $7 billion. Further, as per the Boardroom Cybersecurity Report, cybercrime is forecasted to cost $7 trillion to the world in 2022. It is easy to spot the tendency – when there is demand, there is supply, but of a different kind.

What Ethical Hacking Entails

Enterprises that want to protect their business, data, and clients commonly opt for software testing services to prevent issues that may occur during SDLC. Among critical QA services is ethical hacking. Now, it is most commonly known as penetration testing, though it is one of many security procedures ethical hacking involves.
For businesses to better understand what type of security evaluation or particular services they need, there should be a clearer understanding of ethical hacking’s taxonomy.

• Ethical hacking – a general term to separate black-hat hacking from services provided by cybersecurity professionals.
• Penetration testing – a subdivision of ethical hacking that focuses on evaluating defense mechanisms of digital infrastructures. Typically acts as the imitation of a cyber-attack.
• Cybersecurity technical audit – a set of various tests aimed at investigating security levels of the entire digital infrastructure.
• Application security – an assessment of a particular part of the infrastructure, e.g., a web page, mobile application, etc.
• Vulnerability scanning – an automated process carried out by automation tools that scan a system and report on issues found.
• Red-blue teaming – a ‘secret’ test attack where the defense team does not know that the offense forces are only imitating a real-life intrusion.
• Internal pen test – an investigation aimed at locating vulnerabilities within an infrastructure, capitalizing on the human element, e.g., phishing.
• Bug bounty – a ‘hunt’ for security defects that encourages skilled individuals to try to take on a company’s defense system.

So, when we talk about ethical hacking, we define the procedures and techniques used for white-hat hacking. Within EH processes, there are many specific methods used for particular purposes. Thus, any company can find an approach best suited for their needs.

Benefits of Ethical Hacking

With all of the above in mind, it is time to define what integrating ethical hacking means for business. While a QA company or an ethical hacker may enrich and improve their services further using different approaches, the baseline is impressive as is:

• Enhancing computing systems/applications’ defenses by testing and eliminating their weak points.
• Helping prevent potential security breaches by demonstrating to the attackers the difficulty of bypassing a tested system.
• Safeguarding partnering/connected enterprises’ networks, collectively securing themselves from wide-range attacks.
• Shielding companies’ incomes by protecting their own and clients’ data.
• Building trust between business and stakeholders/clients.
• Boosting teams’ morale by ensuring their privacy and safety.
• Keeping business up to date on current techniques used by attackers via real-world evaluations, thus maintaining strong and innovative security systems.

Ethical hacking now became an umbrella term of sorts. It covers many techniques used for security testing. One cannot say that the taxonomy of ethical hacking defines what procedures are more important or efficient. It is more like an onion, really. Each layer represents a different level of security. And maintaining this security on each level calls for a combination of protection techniques. Thus, cooperating with EHs and cybersecurity professionals gives organizations a leading edge in the battle for digital peace.

To Conclude

Using negative experiences to create positive change is one of humanity’s strong points. With ethical hacking, turning weaknesses into strengths outgrew the ‘motivational proverb’ status and became an encouraging possibility. Inventive EHs and experienced cybersecurity experts keep digital attackers at bay and help people and businesses live with fewer worries. They are like superheroes for hire, where their mastery protects us from malevolent individuals and lets us feel secure.