According to author James Smith, hacking is a skill that can be useful in many different ways.
Knowledge of hacking can be used as the backbone to securing your own computers and systems.
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What made you write this book?
Nowadays companies and individuals both store very important files and information in online databases.
As well as use their websites and online portals to communicate with their followers or customer base.
All of this means that people are much more vulnerable to a hacker and stand to lose much more.
What new knowledge did you gain whilst writing this book?
So I didn’t learn a whole lot in that realm.
I also was made aware of just how many websites online have serious vulnerabilities.
The numbers are staggering.
Part One: What is Hacking?
Introduction
This book is about hacking and other forms of computer crime.
I make no apologies for my choice of subject matter.
The plain fact is, any computer security expert isalsoa hacker.
So, some of the information in this book will enable you to do bad things.
History
So what is this thing, hacking?
A cop, a computer science professor, a SysAdmin, and a hacker will each have divergent definitions.
This battle goes back to long before computers had even been thought of.
Historically, hacking and counter-hacking started with codes or cyphers.
The recipient, however, had an identically shaped stick.
The same considerations led to more and more sophisticated cyphers.
A merchant in Venice might have wanted his agent in Milan to buy olive oil in bulk.
A spy might have needed to send a report on which road an enemy army was following.
Cryptography, in fact, led directly to the development of modern computers.
Still, the advent of the computer had changed the world, and not only for politicians and generals.
This was still not the beginning of what we think of as hacking today.
Typically, they also liked to chat, and the telephone system was their playground.
Once they had this knowledge, they could see no reason not to use it.
Free long-distance phone calls, untraceable numbers, and listening in on others conversations became their specialties.
They called themselves phreaks.
They were usually inquisitive teenagers.
Some went to jail.
Then, the internet came along, and shortly afterwards,all hell broke loose, security-wise.
There you have the history of hacking over two millennia: the contest between secrecy and publicity.
As soon as one side gains a small lead, the other overtakes it again.
This has been the historical pattern so far and seems unlikely to change anytime soon.
Its a strange world, after all.
Take your pick, but you will see these terms time and time again.
SQL Injection
SQL (Structured Query Language) is a wonderful tool for interacting with databases.
It makes life easier for a lot of people, and it makes life easier for hackers as well.
This is one of the oldest security flaws in existence and continues to be a threat.
This is generally accomplished by sending high volumes of irregular traffic to a server, drowning out legitimate requests.
Ransomware
As the name suggests, the entire goal here is to extort money from the victim.
One variant, CryptoLocker, managed to provide its creators more than $ 40 million in ill-gotten gains.
Types of Malware
Malware and hacking go hand in hand.
Rootkits
Once one of these is installed, it is extremely difficult to get rid of.
Rootkits are very stealthy pieces of software that allow the remote control of an affected system.
Some of it is completely legitimate and written as publically-auditable open source projects for a variety of reasons.
Still, others are supported by in-program advertising, much like many websites.
It could be as straightforward as a downloadable.pdf containing embedded malicious code.
Typically attaching themselves to executable programs, many other file types are also vulnerable.
Worm
Worms dig tunnels through computer networks, looking for systems with exploitable vulnerabilities and infecting these.
sending an email) to spread, while worms look for new attack routes all by themselves.
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