How to become a hacker

1. How to become a hacker

In this article, we are going to see how to become a hacker in detail. Some peoples and newbies want to make their careers in ethical hacking. But they are confused about how to become a hacker. So for them here is an article which will help you to become a hacker.

Everyone can be a hacker, including you as long as you want to study hard and never give up easily. You can learn computer science as a self-taught to clear your basic concepts.

1.1 Need a process to become a hacker

Many newbies searching on the internet that how can I become a hacker in 1 month or a week or in a day.😁

Let me tell you no one in this world can become a good hacker so faster. It needs learning for many years.

To achieve success, learning is the process that you must go through, so there is no way to become a hacker quickly, especially if you are a beginner who must learn from the beginning.

Downloading and using a hacking application on the internet will not make you an instant hacker.

To become a hacker, you must know how to write exploits or make a hacking tool for a vulnerability that you discovered on any website or server.

1.2 False Mindset

Here I will straighten out the understanding of "HACKING" which tends to "inaccurate" that may be in your mind for a long.

I will try to explain the true understanding of "hacking" and provide a way to start learning hacking properly and correctly for beginners and script kiddies.

2. What is Hacking?

Hacking is an activity carried out by hackers to identify and look for vulnerabilities in a system or network and exploit these weaknesses to break into the system with or without the permission of the system administrator.

Computers are commonly used in companies for business activities. Computers need to be connected to the network to communicate with one another in support of business activities. By connecting a computer to the outside world means it will be vulnerable to hacking activities.

Hacking means using a computer to commit illegal actions such as fraud, personal data collection, theft of company data, and others.

note: Hacking can be done legally also with the written permission of the owner of the system, To find and patch system vulnerabilities to secure the system from other hackers who want to steal sensitive information.

Companies need to secure their servers and system to avoid attacks like this, This is where the role of ethical hackers is needed to strengthen the defense of the company's computer system.

3. What is Ethical Hacking?

The role of Ethical Hacking is to identify the vulnerability in a computer system or network and to patch/patch the vulnerability.

Ethical hackers must meet the following requirements:

• Obtain official permission in writing from the owner of the system network before doing penetration testing/hacking.

• Keep the privacy of the hacked company or organization.

• Transparently report the discovery of system vulnerabilities from the penetration testing/hacking process to the company/organization.

• Report the vulnerability of hardware/software used by the company to the vendor of the hardware/software for patching.

You can say that ethical hacking is a legal form of hacking.

3.1 Why Ethical Hacking?

• Information is an invaluable asset owned by a company or organization. Maintaining the security and confidentiality of company information can preserve the company's image and save a lot of money.

• Hacking can cause a lot of losses and undermine companies, especially those engaged in the financial sector, Ethical hacking is tasked with securing computer systems and networks one step ahead of malicious hackers.

4. What is a Hacker? And Types of Hackers

Hackers are computer experts who find a vulnerability and make exploits to break into the systems or networks.

Hackers usually have high programming skills and have a vast knowledge of computer security.

Hackers can be classified into the following types based on their skills and objectives:

White Hat (Ethical Hackers): 

White hat hackers are the hackers who perform hacking only if he/she has permission to hack the system to make the system strong. White hat hackers only do legal hacking.

Black Hat Hackers:

Black hat hackers only do illegal hacking and penetrate the system without having any legal permission to hack. The motive of the black hat hacker to steal and damage the sensitive data and then they sell the data to earn a profit. This illegal thing may put these hackers in trouble.

So don't be a black hat only choose white hat hacking if you want to become a hacker.

Grey Hat Hacker:

Grey hat hackers also try to find out the vulnerability in the system without having legal permission to hack.

But these types of hackers do not damage or steal the data from the servers. They grab the attention of the server owners and tell them about vulnerability. The goal of Grey Hat Hackers is to improve system security.

Script Kiddies:

Script Kiddies do the hacking activities like kids 😂. Script Kiddies don't have any special skills to hack. Script kiddies use other hacking tools and hack into the system.

Hacktivist:

Hacktivist is a hacker who uses his hacking skills to spread social, religious, and political messages by hijacking a website or system and leaving messages on the home page by defacing it.

Phreakers:

Phreakers are hackers who search for and exploit a system or telephone network.

5. Things You Must Develop in yourself and Understand before learning Hacking

Extreme hacking skills cannot be achieved instantly. There are many things you need to learn to achieve the skill.

5.1 Curiosity and Passion

You must only come into the hacking field if you have passion and curiosity about hacking. If you don't have passion then you will feel bored in the middle of learning then you will left hacking. 

So you must have passion and curiosity in this field. Be thirsty for knowledge and continue your hacking journey to explore and learn new things.

You must update yourself every time because as technology changes the way of hacking also change.

5.2 Read a lot

You must develop reading skills in yourself. You can buy hacking books from amazon to learn to hack. Read the books daily.

You will not find much information about hacking in videos, So you must develop reading skills in yourself read a lot before sleeping read at least 3 to 5 pages daily of any hacking book like a ghost in the wires.

You can also join hacker forums and websites and ask your question about hacking. The moderators will guide you in the right way.

5.3 Think outside of the box

A hacker required to be creative in thinking by seeing the world from the side and in a different way from most people that a professional hacker always found an idea brilliant idea to find and penetrate the system vulnerability and find the best solution to overcome these weaknesses to strengthen the system he hacked.

5.4 Doesn't matter if you don't have a laptop/Pc

Most peoples don't have a laptop/pc. And they think that they can't become a hacker. But let me tell you. laptop and pc are not necessary to learn to hack.

You can start learning hacking from Android also you just need to install Termux on Android. Termux provides you a Linux shell. So Termux can help you to learn Linux.

I used to hack and do penetration testing with Kali Linux on pc 2 years ago. But nowadays I stopped using that operating system because of Termux android. Nowadays I perform most of the hacking/penetration testing tasks with Termux.

You might be thinking why I don't use Kali Linux like before. My answer is, It is not easy to carry the laptop everywhere. while we can carry android anywhere we want.

6. What are the skills that professional hackers have

What you need to know and keep in mind is, a professional hacker can hack everything, that is present on the internet. Computer science has many branches. While to be able to hack certain services requires very vast knowledge.

For example:

To be able to hack a website a hacker must be an expert and learn to hack in the field of the website to know 100% of the components used to create websites, ranging from server applications, programming languages, databases to modules used by the webserver.

Meanwhile, to be able to crack/hack a binary application (crack program, port exploitation, memory exploitation) a hacker needs to be master in reverse engineering.

To be able to make exploits for discovered vulnerability hacker needs to be master in programming languages like Python.

In conclusion:

So a hacker is a specialist in each and every field of computer. So that he can manipulate anything he wants.

7. How to learn hacking step by step

I have created some steps these steps are necessary to follow for every beginner who wants to become a hacker. By following these steps you can become a professional hacker.

Just you need to do hard work. Don't forget hard work is key to success.

7.1 Learn Linux 

Same like Windows, macOS, Linux is an operating system. You just can see and browse the internet without learning Linux, but you won't be able to become a hacker without learning Linux.

For this reason, hackers are now more inclined to use the Linux operating system to carry out hacking activities ranging from developing to penetration testing.

So our first step is to learn Linux. I prefer to install Kali Linux on your pc or if you don't have pc you can simply install Termux on your Android. Termux is easily available on Google Playstore.

Here are some reasons why you should learn Linux if you want to become a hacker:

Linux is free and open-source:

Free doesn't just mean free, but it means freedom that is synonymous with a hacker who needs the freedom of a platform to be creative in creating his brilliant ideas. Linux is an ideal platform for this because Linux is free and open-source so it is easy to be changed and developed by anyone and for any purpose without the conflict of legal licenses.

Linux supports many programming languages:

Linux supports many programming languages. C / C ++, Java, PHP, Ruby, Python, Perl, and many more and run perfectly on Linux. Linux makes it simple and effective when you write scripts for programs that you develop.

Most hacking tools are made for Linux:

Popular tools like Metasploit, Nmap can run on windows. But Windows doesn't offer a large variety of hacking tools as in Linux there are thousands of hacking tools are available. Linux also performs actions and program execution much faster than windows.

Light and Flexible

For this reason, Linux is the favorite operating system for many devices ranging from servers to small devices / smart devices. Even big companies prefer to use a Linux server rather than windows because hacking windows is easy but hacking Linux is a very difficult task if everything is configured correctly. We can say that Linux is virus-free

Linux is future

Linux is preferred because it is stable, flexible, and resilient. Even your Android phone uses Linux.

You have to perform all of the tasks with Terminal in Kali Linux as well as in Termux.

So from now on start learning Linux. You can download the most famous distro Kali Linux or if you don't have pc you can download Termux for Android. 

Don't be panic there are many tutorials available on the internet that will help you to learn Linux.

7.2 Learn Networking and How the Internet works

As you see in hacking films there are many hacks performed remotely. Like taking control over any device no matter the device present anywhere in the world. If the device is connected to the internet means it is hackable.

To perform such kind of hacking, you just need to have brief information about networks and how the Internet works.

You also must know on which ports which service is running. And also you must have brief information about TCP/ IP protocols.

To learn networking, you can go to Udemy, and search for computer networking. There are many free videos are available on Udemy that will help you to learn networking.

7.3 Learn Programming

Programming plays a major role in hacker life. Programming helps you to develop exploits.

To be a hacker you must and must learn to program, this is so that you understand how the application works if you understand coding correctly, you will more easily find bugs/vulnerability and can directly write the code exploit.

Without Programming, it will be nearly impossible for you to find bug or vulnerability in the code.

Here is the list of most commonly used programming languages for hackers. These languages will help you to become a professional hacker. By learning these languages it will be a lot easier for you to find vulnerabilities in the system as well as in code.

Python:

Python is one of the best programming languages for hackers that you must master. Python is an interpreter language that can be directly run without compiled, so it is very flexible when you make an exploit.

Here are some reasons why hackers use Python:

• Python is an interpreter language, where you can run scripts directly after editing without having to compile

• Suitable for beginners, because the arrangement of the script is easy to read

• A large community so that many plugins/libraries are scattered on the internet

• The best programming language for web server hacking

• Making exploits and tools can be done very quickly.

SQL:

SQL is another best language for ethical hackers. This programming language is used to explore and retrieve information from databases. Because most web-based applications store valuable information such as accounts in databases, SQL is the best programming language for hacking into corporate databases.

Without an adequate understanding of SQL, you will not be able to learn database hacking.

If you understand SQL then you can carry out database attacks using SQL injection techniques to popular database engines such as MySQL, PostgreSQL, MariaDB.

• SQL is not a programming language as in general, SQL is only used to communicate and access databases.

• Hackers use SQL to break into databases with SQL injection techniques.

• SQL is used by many database engines such as MySQL, MS SQL, PostgreSQL, MariaDB.

C:

The basic nature of the C language which is a low-level programming language that provides access to hardware to a low level makes the C language very powerful for manipulating data on hardware such as RAM.

The C language is often used by penetration testers/hackers if they want to access and manipulate hardware components at a low level.

• C is a low-level programming language, which can access hardware to a low level

• Windows, Unix & Linux are made from C language, so master C language if you want to be a hacker

• C is often used to access memory to a low level and process after breaking into the system to increase privileges/access rights.

Javascript:

Thanks to the creation of Node.JS which was built using Javascript, the world changed. Before you all knew that javascript only ran on the client-side (browser), then with node.js javascript could run on the server-side like PHP, Ruby, Perl.

For this reason, a hacker must master JavaScript to be able to hack web-based applications.

With JavaScript a hacker can manipulate existing data on the server using XSS techniques, XSS (cross-site scripting) techniques are used to manipulate data on the client-side which will impact the server-side.

• Javascript is used to carry out XSS attacks.

• Javascript can be used to attack the server and client-side, on web applications.

• Javascript is used to build applications between platforms, so a hacker can find bugs and do attacks by mastering javascript.

PHP:

PHP is a programming language designed to build web-based applications, although in this modern era most web use CMS such as WordPress, Joomla, and drupal, but CMS is built using PHP.

It is mandatory to deepen PHP as capital to find bugs and web-based application exploitation. So I recommend to deepen the skills of PHP, javascript, SQL if you focus on penetration testing a website.

• PHP runs on the server-side, so you have to understand PHP well if you want to exploit and hack a website.

• Understanding PHP will make it easier for you to find bugs and develop exploits for website hacking.

• PHP is the best programming language that you must learn as capital for website hacking.

Assembly:

Assembly is a programming language that is very powerful but also difficult to learn. Assembly is used by hackers to manipulate processes from the lowest level easily.

When you begin to understand exactly how computers work, you will need assembly language to manipulate the process to the most basic level.

• Assembly language makes it easy for hackers to manipulate the system directly at the architecture level.

• Hackers can easily modify processor access and execute instructions from systems that are interfered with Assembly.

• Hackers can easily create complex hacking programs that utilize interrupt services with Assembly.

• Although difficult to master, Assembly is the best language for work that determines time.

8. Types of hacking you must understand

A hacker must be able to force the application to do what the hacker wants if he fully understands the Vulnerability of the application.

There are 3 categories in hacking that you must understand, and each category requires special skills that you must master.

8.1 Web Hacking

To be able to hack into web-based applications/websites, you must learn the technology that builds these websites.

Especially if you know the Programming language that is used to build a particular website. Then it will be easier for you to find bugs and exploit them.

To do web hacking, You need to be able to program HTML, JavaScript, PHP, and SQL.

8.2 Writing Exploit

After you find a vulnerability in the program then you need to write an exploit to exploit the system that you have observed before. to be able to make exploits you have to learn other programming languages ​​such as Python and Ruby.

8.3 Reverse Engineering

Reverse engineering is a process of dismantling an application, to track down the source code and find the flow of how the application works, so hackers can easily find flow defects that can be used as the basis of making exploits.

If you want to learn reverse engineering then you must master the Assembly language. The process of converting code written in a high-level language into a low-level language without changing the original program is known as reverse engineering.

• Reverse engineering is commonly used for program cracking, program modification, security analysis, finding bugs in compiled applications, malware analysis, protocol analysis, and security.

• Reverse engineering is usually used for reversing applications into their original code form. If you have ever downloaded a crack, hackers use this reverse engineering technique to crack a program.

9. Best Hacker Tools

Remember, you will not become a hacker instantly just by using the same tools and operating systems that hackers use. 

You must have to master these tools and operating systems. And also you must need to have brief knowledge about the working of every tool.

9.1 Kali Linux

Kali Linux is one of the Linux OS distributions that is designed and created for the purposes of digital forensics and penetration testing/hacking that are commonly used by computer experts.

This distribution is developed and developed by Offensive Security Ltd, a leading information security training company. This Linux distribution is widely used by hackers.

Kali Linux is based on the Debian distribution, just like Ubuntu and Linux Mint, so if you have learned Linux mint or ubuntu, then the Linux commands are the same.


The difference is that Kali Linux has already installed hundreds of hacking tools that can be used to support hacking activities.

Kali Linux has provided its own repository which contains various hacking tools that you can install with the apt install command.

There are hundreds of hacking tools that you can install on your Linux times that have been arranged in several categories such as information gathering, vuln analysis, wireless attacks, web applications, exploitation tools, stress testing, forensics tools, sniffing & spoofing, password attacks, maintaining access, reverse engineering, hardware hacking, reporting tools.

9.2 Metasploit

Metasploit framework is an application to create, test, and run exploits. Metasploit is commonly used to make tools and modules testing computer security systems as well as being used as a security system testing tool (penetration testing system/hacking).

With such capabilities make Metasploit the best and most favorite hacking tool for now.

The Metasploit Framework can be installed on the Linux, Mac, and Windows operating systems, using Termux you can install the Metasploit framework on your Android mobile so that you will be easier and more flexible in carrying out computer security system / hacking testing activities.

10. Start Forming Mind as an Ethical Hacker

For you to become a professional ethical hacker, you have to start forming a mindset from now on.

10.1 Creative Thinking

If you think creatively, congratulations it is your basic need to become a hacker. Hackers are required to be able to find and solve their own problems, for that hackers are like an artist, philosopher, and also engineer who becomes one. There are many problems (bugs in the world of computer security) out there waiting for you to find a solution. Hackers hone their abilities and sharpen their intelligence by finding problems and finding the right solution.

• For a hacker, learning computer science is an interesting game so that hackers work with more sense of being playing, for professional hackers there is no limit between playing, working, and learning. because for those studying, playing, and working is already in the same place that is "learning computers".

10.2 Give your best to find a solution to the problem

As a hacker, you must be principled that one problem does not need to be solved twice or more if you join the community time is the most valuable thing for hackers.

A hacker must be active in the community to find and share solutions to existing problems as soon as possible.

If you find a solution to an existing problem, hurry up and write the information you get to the public so that people with the same problem can find a solution quickly from the articles you write.

• Do not ever think if you share your discoveries/knowledge you will lose and give them for free. Precisely you will get the name and honor of hackers and community members if you actively write/provide solutions to problems that exist for the community.

• Learn from professional mentors to open your horizons in the world of hacking, in an already sophisticated era you can watch DEFCON videos on YouTube to see how professional hackers work.

10.3 No need to show off

No need to pursue fame so that you are considered a good hacker by the community.

Remember hackers are a matter of skill and ability, not mere recognition, a true hacker does not want to be called a hacker because the term "computer security expert" is far more pleasant to hear and valuable than using the term "hacker" which has a negative connotation.

11. How to self-taught hacking

Hacking skills can be obtained from an educational background, but to make you a professional hacker you have to hone your own skills by self-taught by developing knowledge that you have gained formally or informally.

11.1 Watch DEFCON videos on YouTube

Many DEFCON meeting videos are uploaded on youtube and you can use to speed up the process of learning to hack self-taught.

The DEFCON video will present the hacking techniques commonly used by black hat hackers and how ethical hackers secure the company systems that have hired them as computer security consultants.

DEFCON is one of the biggest hacker gatherings in the world that is held every year in Las Vegas and Nevada.

11.2 Join hackers community

There are many hackers forums and websites are available on the internet that you can join. You must also watch the YouTube channel of the best hacker Hackersploit. Hackersploit channel has a large number of useful videos that will help you to learn ethical hacking.

12. Sharpen your hacking skills

Computer science continues to develop every day, a hacker is required to be one step ahead of existing technology, for this reason, you must learn and enhance your skills so that your knowledge is not left behind.

12.1 Create an open-source project

Make an application that you think fellow hackers or the community needs and publish it openly so that your application can be further developed by the community.

GitHub is one of the best platforms at the moment to put an open-source application repository, with Github you can maintain source code and distribute it simultaneously.

12.2 Learn to open source software testing and debug

There are many open-source applications published on the internet, you can make this as a training tool to enhance your skills by hunting for bugs/vulnerability and helping the application community to develop the security of the opensource application.

• Try to find an application that is still under development and become a good beta tester. You will be allowed to debug the application to find bugs and report bugs immediately and provide solutions to the developer as soon as possible to get rewards. You will learn a lot of new hacking skills from this.

12.3 Post useful information

Join the forum or the opensource community and take part in it by providing useful information for developers or users of the opensource application, indirectly you will learn a lot of new things when reading their problems and try to find solutions.

12.4 Watch DEFCON Videos

When you are just learning, you will definitely think "how can hackers hack the system?" for this reason you need to open your mind by looking at a professional hacker video during a presentation at the Las Vegas hacker meeting event "DEFCON".

In the video DEFCON, participants who are mostly "white hat hackers" will make hacking and demo presentations on the stage, from there you will learn a lot of new things from each DEFCON participant.

DEFCON videos are widely scattered on YouTube, please start and see the presentations of professional hackers so you have an idea of ​​how they work.

12.5 Join the Bug Bounty Program

Bug Bounty is a term used for a contest whose contents "Anyone who can find a bug/vulnerability in a particular system and report it, is entitled to a reward".

This bounty bug certainly exists for every company that uses the internet as a business tool, such as Nokia, Google, Microsoft, and almost all online companies open bug bounties to make the system much safer, by hiring freelance hackers to find bugs and report it to the company and rewarded.

You can find the bounty bug rules for each company in the footer section of their official website.

You can enhance your hacking skills by following the bounty bug competition while learning to hack, who knows how to get bugs and get money too.

Bugcrowd is one of the famous bug bounty programs so you can join here. There are more bug bounty programs available on the internet.

12.6 Learn hacking CTF challenge.

If you want to compete with your hacking skills you can take part in the CTF (Capture The Flag) hacking competition, in this competition a hacker will be given a problem and must successfully find the flag, this flag can be obtained by doing the actual hacking techniques.

The server given is very diverse and each server requires special expertise to be able to hack and get flags. Each question has a different level and scores depending on the level of difficulty, the more questions you solve the higher the score you get.

There are many websites available on the internet that provide CTF challenge and you can participate in it, you can also see the leaderboard hackers who have managed to get the flag and get the score.

Enter the keyword "CTF Challenges" in Google then you will get a list of websites that provide CTF challenges that you can try to measure and enhance your hacking skills.

HackTheBox is one of the best websites that provide CTF challenges. I personally use this website.

13. Ethical hacker as a Profession

You can make your profession in Ethical hacking and also you can earn a good amount of money. To make a profession in Ethical hacking you need a computer science degree and also you have to pass the OSCP exam. The OSCP exam is held online.

You will be given some servers you have to hack the given servers to qualify. As you pass the exam. OSCP will provide you with a certified ethical hacker certificate.

With the help of a certificate and a Degree, you can easily get a job in companies that are looking for Cyber Security experts.

You can visit this website: https://hackinfo.nl/index.php/hacking

This guy has listed some well known hacking blogs and forums. Through which you can learn hacking.

Conclusion

Hackers are not a nickname that you can get instantly if you are computer savvy, hackers are talented people who are talented in the field of computers who are so fond of learning, solving problems so that they know very well how computers work and know how to manipulate computers to run under what hackers want.

There is a long journey that you must take if you want to become a hacker, be sure everyone is born with different interests and talents, but that is not a determinant of the size of a person worthy or not to be a hacker.

As long as you have the interest, love, great dedication to learning computers you will be able to become an Ethical Hacker.

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