The moment you read the word “hacking,” you might think that hacking is an illegal activity that puts someone’s data and privacy at stake. But, to your surprise, hacking needn’t be unlawful always. Sometimes, people hack to test the level of security of your firewall. It is also true that companies recruit ethical hackers just to keep their cybersecurity at check. A white-hat hacker is an ethical hacker because ethical hacking happens only with the consent of the organization. On the contrary, black hat hackers invade into someone’s device, steal their data, with an entirely unhealthy intention.
However, if you are interested in Ethical Hacking, then this article might help you! Sliding through this article, you will discover some of the best Ethical Hacking tools that would be suitable for almost all kinds of platforms.
10. Maltego
Developed by Paterva, Maltego is an ethical hacking tool based on information gathering. It gathers information (either passively or actively) about the system ( the target) and represents the data it has collected in the form of a graph. What’s more interesting about the tool is that it enhances the ethical hacking process by making it easier for us to understand the target by visual representation. It is available in both the paid version and free version. It is available in a variety of platforms like Linux, macOS, and Microsoft windows. And also, the paid version of Maltego ranges between $999 and $1999, which is worth it!
9.THC Hydra
THC Hydra is a tool that helps the white hat hackers to know how weak the security of the system is. When you come to know about the level of security available for your device, you can easily advance the safety for your gadget, providing no room for breaching and brute-forcing. Linux, Windows, Solaris, FreeBSD, QNX, macOS are some of the platforms, where the application runs smoothly.
8.Aircrackng
Aircrack ng is quite a compelling tool that helps to analyze the wifi network security. It comprises a variety of stuff within it, like a WEP/WPA2-PSK cracker, packet sniffer, and a detector. It is available in about three versions. Platforms like Linux, FreeBSD, macOS, OpenBSD, and Windows support the tool. It is a cross-platform software, which is a free software application.
7. John The Ripper
Unix (Operating System) developed this software application and it is a tool that helps to crack passwords. This particular application can be executed in as many as fifteen platforms and is available freely. John TheRipper is of cross-platform type, and it is one of the most used software by white hat hackers. Some of the specific methods that this tool performs are brute-forcing and dictionary attack.
6. Netsparker
Netsparker is a security scanner that brings all the vulnerabilities of your system into the limelight. The most welcoming feature of the tool is that it recognizes the problems in your system in such a way that you needn’t put any manual efforts into troubleshooting the problem in your device. In other words, it does proof-based scanning and enables manual editing. Another exciting feature of this tool is that it has built-in tools that support reporting and exploitation. This software is free and ready to download type.
5. Nessus
Developed by Tenable, Nessus is one of the world’s most employed vulnerability scanner. This software is of cross-platform type and renderson Linux, macOS, and Windows. There is one extraordinary feature this tool holds! It can initiate a dictionary attack, with the help of another ethical hacking tool, THC hydra. It’s available in the paid version and costs about $1200.
4. Nmap
Also called Network Mapper, it detects the vulnerability of a system to being hacked. Not only does it assess potential security risks, but it also assists network discovery, host discovery, and port scanning. So, why Nmap? You may ask. The reason that Nmap is worth mentioning because it is an open-source application that’s available free of cost. Imagine when something worth a lot is available free on a platform! It’s a golden opportunity, indeed! Next time when you think of a tool that performs OS detection and network discovery, Nmap is undeniably a go-to option!
3. Wireshark
Basically, a Network Protocol Analyzer, Wireshark is a versatile application that facilitates deep inspection of network protocols and runs on multi-platforms like Linux, Windows, macOS, Solaris, FreeBSD, and NetBSD. The way it works is incredible because it captures packets of information which, enhances network troubleshooting. Another fact that makes it unique is that it is an open-source software that detects many kinds of traffic in your system. The OS is actually of cross-platform type, andtrust me, this packet analyzer is just astounding!
2. Acunetix
If you wonder if there is any software that performs vulnerability scanning, prevent potential threats in your system, detect SQL issues and manage web security along with network reliability, then. Acunetix is a single word for it! This software deserves the second position in this list for obvious reasons. It enables automated vulnerability scanning that’s far better than manual auditing. Keeping in mind that time consumption and efficiency as the vital parameters, automated scanning outshines manual inspection. If you want a tool that analyzes all the ways through which hackers may breach your system, then do not wait, this is the right choice for you!
1.Metaspoilt
Metaspoilt takes the topmost spot beyond doubt. The reason is that it has plenty of built-in tools which enable it to perform almost all kinds of functions. The number of tasks it accomplishes is numerous. One of the most blatant reasons to opt for this software is that it supports penetration testing, a type of network security level detection. It is of cross-platform type and is one of the most recent software released. It comprises of anti-forensic tools that strengthen its functionality. It is an open-source framework that supports both cyber-attacks (for black hat hackers) and cybersecurity(for white hat hackers). If you happen to be a white hat ethical hacker, then this tool is more than a fortune for you!
I hope this article offered you a deep insight into the best ethical hacking tools so far!
