Metasploit

Metasploit took the security world by storm when it was released in 2004. It is an advanced open-source platform for developing, testing, and using exploit code. The extensible model through which payloads, encoders, no-op generators, and exploits can be integrated has made it possible to use the Metasploit Framework as an outlet for cutting-edge exploitation research. It ships with hundreds of exploits, as you can see in their list of modules. This makes writing your own exploits easier, and it certainly beats scouring the darkest corners of the Internet for illicit shellcode of dubious quality. One free extra is Metasploitable, an intentionally insecure Linux virtual machine you can use for testing Metasploit and other exploitation tools without hitting live servers.

Metasploit was completely free, but the project was acquired by Rapid7 in 2009 and it soon sprouted commercial variants. The Framework itself is still free and open source, but they now also offer a free-but-limited Community edition, a more advanced Express edition ($3,000 per year per user), and a full-featured Pro edition ($15,000 per user per year). Other paid exploitation tools to consider are Core Impact (more expensive) and Canvas (less).

The Metasploit Framework now includes an official Java-based GUI and also Raphael Mudge’s excellent Armitage. The Community, Express, and Pro editions have web-based GUIs. For downloads and more information, visit the Metasploit homepage.

 

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Aircrack-ng

Aircrack-ng

Aircrack is a suite of tools for 802.11a/b/g WEP and WPA cracking. It implements the best known cracking algorithms to recover wireless keys once enough encrypted packets have been gathered. . The suite comprises over a dozen discrete tools, including airodump (an 802.11 packet capture program), aireplay (an 802.11 packet injection program), aircrack (static WEP and WPA-PSK cracking), and airdecap (decrypts WEP/WPA capture files). For downloads and more information, visit the Aircrack homepage.

 

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Nessus Vulnerability Scanner

Nessus is one of the most popular and capable vulnerability scanners, particularly for UNIX systems. It was initially free and open source, but they closed the source code in 2005 and removed the free “Registered Feed” version in 2008. It now costs $1,200 per year, which still beats many of its competitors. A free “Home Feed” is also available, though it is limited and only licensed for home network use.

Nessus is constantly updated, with more than 46,000 plugins. Key features include remote and local (authenticated) security checks, a client/server architecture with a web-based interface, and an embedded scripting language for writing your own plugins or understanding the existing ones. The open-source version of Nessus was forked by a group of users who still develop it under the OpenVAS name. For downloads and more information, visit the Nessus homepage.

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Wireshark

Wireshark (known as Ethereal until a trademark dispute in Summer 2006) is a fantastic open source multi-platform network protocol analyzer. It allows you to examine data from a live network or from a capture file on disk. You can interactively browse the capture data, delving down into just the level of packet detail you need. Wireshark has several powerful features, including a rich display filter language and the ability to view the reconstructed stream of a TCP session. It also supports hundreds of protocols and media types. A tcpdump-like console version named tshark is included. One word of caution is that Wireshark has suffered from dozens of remotely exploitable security holes, so stay up-to-date and be wary of running it on untrusted or hostile networks (such as security conferences). For downloads and more information:

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Using Google Hacks

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The Basics of Hacking and Penetration Testing Ethical Hacking and Penetration Testing Made Easy (PDF) $6.99

 

The Basics of Hacking and Penetration Testing Ethical Hacking and Penetration Testing Made Easy (PDF)

The Basics of Hacking and Penetration Testing serves as an introduction to the steps required to complete a penetration test or perform an ethical hack. You learn how to properly utilize and interpret the results of modern day hacking tools; which are required to complete a penetration test. Tool coverage will include, Backtrack Linux, Google, Whois, Nmap, Nessus, Metasploit, Netcat, Netbus, and more. A simple and clean explanation of how to utilize these tools will allow you to gain a solid understanding of each of the four phases and prepare them to take on more in-depth texts and topics. This book includes the use of a single example (pen test target) all the way through the book which allows you to clearly see how the tools and phases relate.

The Art of Deception – Kevin D. Mitnick (PDF) $4.99

 

The Art of Deception

The world’s most infamous hacker offers an insider’s view of the low-tech threats to high-tech security Kevin Mitnick’s exploits as a cyber-desperado and fugitive form one of the most exhaustive FBI manhunts in history and have spawned dozens of articles, books, films, and documentaries. Since his release from federal prison, in 1998, Mitnick has turned his life around and established himself as one of the most sought-after computer security experts worldwide. Now, in The Art of Deception, the world’s most notorious hacker gives new meaning to the old adage, “It takes a thief to catch a thief.”

Wifi Protector (Android) $2.49

 

Wifi Protector

Detects and protects from all kinds of ARP (Address Resolution Protocol) related attacks in Wi-Fi networks, like DOS (Denial Of Service) or MITM (Man In The Middle).

Protects your phone from tools like FaceNiff, Cain & Abel, ANTI, ettercap, DroidSheep, NetCut, and all others that try to hijack your session via “Man In The Middle” through ARP spoofing / ARP poisoning.

Don’t allow such tools to break your privacy and steal your data. You can defend yourself with a single app.

Allows secure usage of Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Live.com, eBay …

WifiKill can’t take you offline with this app installed. The “Immunity” feature is the only one that requires root, all other features work without root access.

Hacking The Art of Exploitation 2nd Edition (PDF) $7.99

 

Hacking The Art of Exploitation 2nd Edition 

Google Hacking Database (Android)

 

Google Hacking Database

 

Originally created by Johnny Long of Hackers for Charity, The Google Hacking Database (GHDB) is an authoritative source for querying the ever-widening reach of the Google search engine. In the GHDB, you will find search terms for files containing usernames, vulnerable servers, and even files containing passwords. When The Google Hacking Database was integrated in The Exploit Database, the various googledorks contained in the thousands of exploit entries were entered into the GHDB. The direct mapping allows penetration testers to more rapidly determine if a particular web application has a publicly available exploit.