Information gathering is one of the most important steps in ethical hacking. It involves collecting information about a target system or network in order to identify vulnerabilities that can be exploited. The information may be gathered manually or through automated tools.
Manual information-gathering techniques include things like social engineering, reverse engineering, and dumpster diving. Automated tools can be used to scan for open ports, running services, and other information that can be used to attack a system.
Information gathering is an important part of ethical hacking because it allows hackers to find weak points that can be exploited. By gathering as much information as possible about a target, hackers can more easily find and exploit vulnerabilities. so now you know what is information gathering in ethical hacking.
Information gathering can be classified into 3 categories:
- Footprinting
- Scanning
- Enumeration
Also read: How to install Metasploit in Termux without root in 2022?
What is Footprinting?
Footprinting is a technique used for gathering information about a target. It’s usually executed by individuals with a high level of expertise in social engineering, such as penetration testers and computer network defenders.
It is the act of finding out all the personal details that can be found on an individual. The goal of the footprint is to find out as much information on the person’s life as possible and to use it against them in case they ever do something that may harm you or your company.
There are two types of footprinting:
- Active
- Passive
Active footprinting involves actually interacting with a system in order to gather information about it, while passive footprinting involves simply observing a system from the outside.
Active footprinting can be done in a number of ways, such as by trying to log into a system with various username and password combinations, or by sending specific requests to a server and observing the responses. This Includes:-
- Performing WHOIS analysis
- Performing Social Engineering
- Performing Traceroute
- Extracting DNS information
- Using e-mail tracking
- Web spiders
- Querying Published name server
Passive footprinting, on the other hand, can be done by simply observing network traffic, looking for publicly available information, or by using tools that perform port scans. Both active and passive can be useful in different situations.
The active footprint is more likely to yield accurate and up-to-date information, but it also runs the risk of alerting the system administrators to your presence.
Passive footprint, on the other hand, is less likely to alert anyone to your presence, but it can be more difficult to gather accurate and up-to-date information. This Includes:-
- Finding Information use of Search Engines
- Monitoring the website traffic of the victim
- Tracking the online reputation of the target.
- Finding the TLD’s (Top-Level Domains) and Sub-Domains
- Extract Information from the internet archive
Advantages of footprinting:
There are many advantages, which is why it is such a popular technique among hackers. First of all, it is a very effective way of gathering information about a target system. By it a system, a hacker can learn a great deal about its weaknesses and vulnerabilities.
Additionally, It can help a hacker to plan and execute an attack more effectively. Finally, the footprint can also be used as a form of reconnaissance, which can help a hacker to gather information about a target without actually having to interact with it.
Also read: What is Sniffing Attack, Type or Tools Full explain?
What is Scanning?
Scanning is the process of identifying potential targets on a network. This can be done by looking for open ports, running services, or vulnerable software. Once potential targets have been identified, the attacker can then move on to trying to exploit them.
Scanning is an important part of ethical hacking, as it allows the hacker to find potential targets that they can then attempt to exploit. By doing this, the hacker can find and fix vulnerabilities before they can be exploited by malicious actors.
There are three types of scanning:
- Network Scanning
- Port Scanning
- Vulnerability Scanning
Network Scanning:
- To scan live hosts/computers, IP addresses, and open ports of the victim.
- To scan services that are running on a host computer.
- To scan the Operating System and system architecture of the target.
- To scan and deal with vulnerabilities in Live hosts.
Port Scanning:
Port scanning is a technique used by hackers to gain information about a computer system or network. By scanning for open ports, hackers can get an idea of what services are running on a system and what vulnerabilities may be present.
Port scanning can be used for good or bad purposes, but it is often used by attackers to find ways to break into systems.
Vulnerability Scanning
Vulnerability scanning is the process of detecting potential security vulnerabilities in a pc system. It may be done manually or using automated tools. Vulnerability scanning can help an organization identify and fix weaknesses before they are exploited by attackers.
Information Gathering Tools:
There are many information gathering tools available but I tell the most popular tools:
NMAP: The Nmap tool is a powerful network exploration and security auditing tool. It may be used to detect hosts and services on a network, as well as security issues. It may be used to scan for vulnerable open ports on systems.
Additionally, Nmap can be used to fingerprint operating systems and services, making it easier to identify vulnerabilities. The Nmap tool is free and open source and is available for Windows, Linux, and OS X.
Whois lookup: Whois lookup is a tool that allows you to find out who owns a domain name or IP address. You can use it to find contact information for the owner of a website or to see if a particular domain name is available.
Whois lookup can also be used to find out when a domain name was registered and when it is set to expire.
SPARTA: Sparta is a powerful tool that can help you manage your website’s security posture. It can help you identify and track vulnerabilities, as well as track remediation efforts.
Sparta can also help you keep your website compliant with security best practices.
Nslookup: The nslookup tool is a network administration utility for querying Domain Name System (DNS) name servers.
It can be used to find out the IP address of a website or server, and can also be used to troubleshoot DNS problems. The nslookup tool is included in most Unix and Linux distributions and is also available for Windows.
Conclusion:
I hope now you understood what is information gathering in ethical hacking and all method or Tools. if you have any suggestions just contact us or comment. Please share this article with your friends Thank you…
