What Is Ethical Hacking & How Does It Work?

The word ‘hacking’ typically conjures images of cyber criminals attacking computer systems, networks and applications, with malicious deeds in mind like data theft and sabotage against critical operations.

However, while the internet may be plagued by bad actors, there are also those who use their hacking skills for good. Ethical Hackers, unlike their malicious counterparts, identify and report security flaws to companies and organizations (like ecommerce firms and agencies) so they can be fixed.

What is Ethical Hacking?

The term ethical hacking usually refers to the practice of using hacking techniques to explore, identify and report cyber security vulnerabilities – in other words, hacking with positive motivations.

Also known as White Hat hacking, ethical hacking has become a professional occupation, with companies and organizations calling on the services of these hackers to help strengthen their resilience against actual cyber threats.

Once approved, ethical hackers carry out goal-orientated tasks, like Penetration Tests (real-world threat hacking simulations), to uncover exploitable flaws and issues lurking within systems, networks, devices and applications, including:

• Data Exposure
• Injection Attacks
• Misconfigurations
• Broken/Breached Authentication 
• and Vulnerable Components

In a controlled environment, ethical hackers can flag and assess these weaknesses by carrying out several different types of hacking methods, including:

• Penetration Testing – focused on breaching a company’s systems, networks and apps
• System Hacking – gaining access to a company’s individual systems
• Network Hacking – scanning a company’s network security for weaknesses
• Web Application Testing – uncovering any issues with a company’s websites and apps
• Internal Testing – focused on finding weaknesses amongst the company’s personnel/processes

Once the client’s security analyst has read the ethical hacker’s report, they can quickly get to work on patching any listed flaws within their security system, allowing them to strengthen the protection of information and assets like sensitive data and critical infrastructure, etc.

How Do Ethical Hackers Work?

In the world of hacking, there are several different types of hackers, but for this article, we’ll be focusing on White Hats (ethical hackers) and Black Hats (malicious hackers).

Unlike Black Hats, who typically operate without rules and principles, White Hats have a strict Code of Ethics which must be abided by to help ensure that their actions remain helpful and never (intentionally) harmful.

They are also fully trained professionals (more on that below) operating in what has become a legitimate field, with specific qualifications and credentials to demonstrate their various skills and commitment to ethics.

While the exact code of ethics adopted by White Hats may vary slightly depending on the individual or group employed, the guidelines for ethical hacking are generally as follows:

• Approval must always be firstly obtained, and the specific scope of works agreed, including system and asset testing, methodology and activity timeframes, etc
• No harm must be caused, given that the role of the White Hat is to merely think and act ‘like’ a Black Hat – not to actually inflict damage and compromise sensitive information once a weakness is found
• The confines of the law must be respected, meaning that White Hats should only stick to legal methods and techniques to carry out their works, and associate/correspond only with fellow White Hats
• All discoveries of works undertaken must remain confidential, with all knowledge gathered from system security penetration tests and assessments, etc, only shared with the company (employer) itself
• All evidence of hacking activities must be cleared, as it could potentially be exploited by Black Hats in their own attempts to breach systems and networks

What Skills Do Ethical Hackers Need?

Before a White Hat can seek an ethical hacking assignment, they must first demonstrate that they possess the relevant fundamental training and qualifications to understand and interact with computer systems.

A bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Cyber Security or Information Technology, is usually expected by employers, along with knowledge of programming/scripting, operating systems, networks and security tools.

White Hats may have also enrolled in a field-specific certification program such as CEH (Certified Ethical Hacker), offered by the EC-Council, or CompTIA Pen Test+, which focuses on penetration testing and vulnerability assessment.

What Does Ethical Hacking Involve?

Once qualified and approved to begin an assignment, a White Hat’s work should always remain structured, legal and focused on improving cyber security, with clearly identified objectives, methodology and scheduling.

Here’s a breakdown of the typical six stages involved in most ethical hacking projects (which are essentially ‘friendly’ penetration test assessments consisting of simulated security breaches) from planning through to completion:

Planning & Preparation

In order to outline a clear scope of the assessment and set goals, White Hats must do the ground work (sometimes known as ‘footprinting’) to gather in-depth info about the target system, including computers, mobile devices, web apps and servers, network structure and potential security flaws, etc.

Scanning

Before the penetration tests (commonly referred to as pen tests) can get underway, White Hats thoroughly scan the system using various methods and specialized tools, such as diallers and sweepers, to uncover vulnerable services, open ports and other weaknesses.

Penetration Test Staging

With the research stages completed, the White Hat is equipped with all the information they need to understand and assess the system’s access vectors and begin a variety of attacks; they now attempt to hack the system, exploiting it with real-world attack methods, including:

• SQL Injection Attacks – entering malicious code into input fields on apps and web pages to try and access sensitive data
• DoS (Denial of Service) Attacks – attempting to overload servers, apps and other network resources with traffic to try and take them offline
• Cross-Site Scripting – attempting to bury malicious code into the organization’s website, which ‘could’ potentially harm unsuspecting users browsing
• Social Engineering – attempting to dupe organization personnel into compromising network security using phishing, baiting and other deceptive tactics

Maintaining Access

Next, the White Hat seeks to test the access vectors in order to gauge how far he can push them and see if they can be maintained for further attacks; they may attempt to steal databases, launch DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) attacks, or further exploit system access.

Clearing Tracks

No penetration test is complete without the White Hat erasing all evidence of their presence and activity – if they don’t, a Black Hat could potentially track and exploit the uncovered system flaws. The White Hat’s critical clean-up process usually includes steps like restoring the original system setup, reversing HTTP shells, and clearing their cache.

Submitting Reports

With all of the penetration test work and assessment complete, it’s time for the White Hat to look over the findings of their ethical hack and produce a report, which will be shared digitally or verbally, depending on the company’s instructions.

The report will feature extensive analysis, outlining the vulnerabilities exploited, the info and assets that were accessed, how security systems were avoided, the potential level of risk, and finally, the White Hat’s recommended solutions for strengthening the company’s system security.

What are the Benefits of Ethical Hacking?

Ethical hacking has become a highly beneficial field in contemporary cyber security, helping many businesses, organizations and institutions to defend their websites, computer systems, networks and apps against cyber attacks.

By thinking and acting like Black Hats – without actually doing any harm – White Hats can uncover vulnerabilities, report their findings, and play an essential role in safeguarding their clients from threats including cyber vandalism, data theft and viruses like the notorious ransomware.

Real-life cyber breaches aren’t just an inconvenience for victims – they can lead to costly restoration bills, data compliance breach fines, erosion of public/customer trust, eventual financial ruin, and even compromise a country’s critical infrastructure and national security.

While some assignments may have their limitations, depending on parameters set, along with time- and resource-restraints, it’s hard to deny the benefits of ethical hacking, with many certified White Hats making a significant contribution in the world’s ongoing fight against cyber crime.