Ethical hacking or white hat hackers are security experts who help organizations tackle security threats and safeguard their data. This may sound easy to your ears but in reality, it is quite complex and demanding. However, what’s more complex is how to learn hacking step by step and become an ethical hacker. This is not an overnight process and requires years of dedication and training. In this article, you will discover how to learn ethical hacking and the best platforms to find top-notch hacking courses.
How to Learn Ethical Hacking
Continue reading the article to know more about how to learn hacking step-by-step starting from the basics. Always remember, the journey to becoming the best ethical hacker may not be an easy one but it is definitely worth every effort.
Contents
- How to Learn Ethical Hacking
- How to Learn Hacking Step by Step
- Learn C Programming
- Learn Other Programming Languages
- Learn UNIX
- Learn Cryptography
- Find Loopholes in Existing Programs
- Partake in Open-source Security Projects
- Test Your Skills with Challenges
- Keep Experimenting
- Be Consistent with What You Do
- Explore Hidden Web
- How to Find the Best Ethical Hacking Course Online
How to Learn Hacking Step by Step
If you want to learn hacking step by step, you have come to the right place. Here you will discover the road map to being the best ethical hacker bit by bit.
1. Learn C Programming
As people often say, understanding the basics is the first and foremost thing you need to master what’s coming next. If your basics are not clear, everything else may become gibberish. Similarly, in ethical hacking, you must learn C Programming like your life depends on it.
C Programing is one of the most popular, versatile, and commonly used programming languages. You can use it for both apps and technologies as well as make the base cemented for learning Java, Python, C++, etc. This machine-independent language divides the program into numerous modules. Accordingly, you can write each module independently which together forms a single C program.
Also Read: Top 10 Skills Required to Become a Ethical Hacker
2. Learn Other Programming Languages
After C Programming comes the new generation’s additions such as Java, Python, PHP, Perl, HTML, and so on. So, once you feel like you know the basic how-to about C, you must move on to learning other programming languages.
This will help you understand why many programmers prefer Python over others and how to learn ethical hacking from the basics. For this, you can either refer to YouTube video lessons or buy books written by coding experts.
3. Learn UNIX
If you know anything about hacking, you must have heard about UNIX. It is a multi-user operating system that is specifically engineered for laptops, desktops, and servers. Since its GUI is pretty similar to Windows, beginners can learn this with ease. Since a major part of the total number of servers is hosted on UNIX, understanding it becomes an integral part of your journey to becoming the best ethical hacker.
4. Learn Cryptography
Cryptography is mainly used in SSL-based internet communication and thus, every hacker needs to understand its importance. It is the art and technique of securing fragile information by using codes. In this way, only the sender and receiver are able to access the information while it remains gibberish for the rest.
Generally, cryptography comes useful in e-commerce, ATM cards, computer passwords, etc. Being an ethical hacker, you need to understand the practices, rule book, and strategies used in cryptography. You must also know about the various techniques and tools used for cracking passwords. Also, try to incorporate learning about encryption algorithms to figure out what makes them difficult to decrypt even by experts.
Also Read: 18 Best Tools for Hacking
5. Find Loopholes in Existing Programs
If you want to learn something new with a more practice-oriented approach, this is a good step. Try to implement what you have learned so far and find vulnerabilities in existing programs. This will help you in understanding hacking from a deeper level by enabling you to sharpen your skills every day. After all, identifying a weakness in your foe or any software is what expert hackers are good at doing. For instance, the most common ones in Android are configuration errors, outdated software, bugs, open insecure services, etc.
6. Partake in Open-source Security Projects
You can participate in open-source security projects being held by numerous hacking websites on the internet. They are available for all and anyone with basic hacking knowledge can partake to add their valuable contribution to the benefit of the mass. Moreover, it will also add to your integrity as a hacker and make you appear more put-together and professional.
7. Test Your Skills with Challenges
Once you get accustomed to the basics of ethical hacking, it is time to put those skills and knowledge to test. For this, active participating in online hacking challenges is an ideal solution. Apart from this, you can also use learning websites to learn hacking by playing games. Yes, you read it right. Numerous educational platforms combine gaming with hacking to make learning a fun process for all learners. Each challenge or level is carefully crafted to embed different hacking concepts.
Also Read: 20 Best WiFi Hacking Tools for PC
8. Keep Experimenting
Once you get the basic understanding of hacking, you must try experimenting to get hands-on experience. For instance, you can set up your lab to experiment with different operating systems and applications. You can modify your lab by making as many advances with high-tech tech gadgets as you wish or keep it simple and sober.
Here are the things you should consider before experimenting with something:
- Always ensure you have the latest backup before making any changes
- Stay within the jurisdictions of ethical hacking and know when to stop
- If you do not succeed at first, keep improvising and getting better with every attempt
- Do not forget to document your progress and what you learned in each experiment
9. Be Consistent with What You Do
The key to mastering anything is being consistent. If you are not practicing daily and making efforts to learn something new, it will give you positive results in the long term. Similarly, if you want to master how to learn ethical hacking, you need to maintain consistency. This can be achieved by reading blogs, and e-books, watching video lessons and then implementing all that in completing challenges.
10. Explore Hidden Web
You might have heard about the dark web but do you know what it means? In layman’s language, the dark web is that part of the internet that is accessible only to those who know how to use special software. This allows them to remain untraceable and maintain their unbreachable anonymity.
Interestingly, this dark web has a legitimate side to it as well. Being an ethical hacker means learning about this part of the internet along with other coding languages and software.
Also Read: 43 Best Hacking E-books Every Beginner Should Know About!
How to Find the Best Ethical Hacking Course Online
If you are wondering how to get started with ethical hacking but unaware of what they actually offer, this might help you. For the uninformed, an ethical hacking course free with certificate helps you learn hacking from the scratch and become a pro in only a few months. For instance, you get started by honing your database skills, networking skills, programming, cryptography, proficiency in OS, and so much more.
Here are the 7 best platforms to get your hands on the best ethical hacking courses:
- Udemy
- Coursera
- Simplilearn
- FutureLearn
- Udacity
- Codecademy
- LinkedIn Learning
Q1. Can you self teach ethical hacking?
Ans. Yes, you can explore and learn ethical hacking on your own with no expensive resources. Nonetheless, this niche requires immense dedication and hard work to excel in what you practice.
Q2. Can a beginner learn hacking?
Ans. Yes, a beginner can learn hacking by using free resources, video lessons, and e-books on the internet. There are various hacking courses and programs that teach hacking from scratch with no hidden fee.
Q3. Is ethical hacker easy to learn?
Ans. Everything is easy in this world if you strive hard to make it work under any conditions. Despite that, it is essential to remember that hacking is not child’s play. You can shape your career in it if you dedicate enough time and energy to becoming the best ethical hacker.
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Many organizations, big-scale companies, and government agencies require hackers to safeguard their data and information. After all, it is one of the most crucial aspects, and losing it can cause financial loss. This is why there is a huge demand for ethical hackers. By learning how to learn ethical hacking, you can contribute to the welfare of society and boost your cybersecurity knowledge and skills.
