Wanna be pentester
Autor: Crash | Publicado: 2016-05-01T06:40:00-07:00

Hi guys! 
So, if you are reading this, I'm dead! Lol kidding.
Seriously now, if you are reading this, it is because you are trying to become a pentester and not a stupid teenager who just wants to run a tool and tell his friends that he is a hacker.
Also, if you are concerned/complaining about the icon size on your desktop, your sound card is not working in Kali linux or you are too lazy to read it, go back to your normal life, you don’t have the pentester/hacker soul.

If you are still reading at this point, I already suppose that you have at least the basic knowledge of:
- Linux operation and management 
- Windows operation and management 
- Some programming language skills (perl, python, ruby, javascript) also, for web pentests event HTML is required, even if it isn't a programming language  
- Basic Network knowledge (TCP/IP, ICMP)  /Network services (Proxy, VPN, Samba, AD)
- Protocols like HTTP, FTP, DNS, SSH
- SQL (DDL, DML and so on) mysql, sqlserver, postgress, oracle.

If you don't have these skills, really, don’t try to get into the security world at this moment or you will get frustrated for sure. You will need a lot a reading before you can start it. 

Don’t think just installing Kali linux on your machine magically makes you a pentester, it takes time, and to be honest, a lot of time! 

If you want to learn linux, don’t start with Kali for the following reasons: http://docs.kali.org/introduction/should-i-use-kali-linux. Basically these lines: “The fact of the matter is, however, that Kali is a Linux distribution specifically geared towards professional penetration testers and security specialists, and given its unique nature, it is NOT a recommended distribution if you’re unfamiliar with Linux or are looking for a general-purpose Linux desktop distribution for development, web design, gaming, etc.”

The most important thing is: Know how things work. 
I know a lot of “hackers” who are able to dump entire databases but they don't even know  how a SELECT or CREATE TABLE statement works, or guys who are able to take down a server but they don't even know what an icmp type 8 is. I will not discuss the guys who use SET to grab Facebook credentials, I felt sick writing this last sentence…

So, don’t be big headed, start your studies in the correct way. Just executing  tools does not make you a hacker/pentester.
Don’t be a simple stupid script kiddie, these guys are jokes in the security world.  Do you wanna be like these guys? I don’t think so.

And another tip: Don’t think that everything is for free, you'll need to save some money to buy books, training or certifications.

There are a lot of trainings available on the internet, I’m saving some time for you:

Some books and links to start (I put them in the order that I think is the best way to learn, feel free to choose the best way for you):

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modern_Operating_Systems
http://cse.hcmut.edu.vn/~minhnguyen/NET/Computer%20Networks%20-%20A%20Tanenbaum%20-%205th%20edition.pdf
http://www.amazon.com/HTTP-Definitive-Guide-Guides/dp/1565925092
https://www.edx.org/course/introduction-linux-linuxfoundationx-lfs101x-0    
https://linuxacademy.com/linux
http://linux-training.be/
http://www.htmlandcssbook.com/
https://en.wikiversity.org/wiki/Programming_Logic
https://www.python.org/about/gettingstarted/
https://www.perl.org/books/beginning-perl/
http://www.sqlcourse.com/

Now you have at least 6 months of studying ahead, and you can find by yourself more related trainings. Remember, google is your friend. 

I ALREADY HAVE THE SKILLS (Really? Double check it)

So, if you already have the required skills, there are some good references that you can use to get into IT security, but first you should select one area and move to another one after you have mastered(my recommendation). However, sometimes you have to mix them in order to get better results. Some security areas (it’s not an exhaustive list): 

Web Pentesting
Network Pentesting
Mobile Pentesting
SCADA Pentesting
Reverse Engineering
Malware Analysis
Forensics 
Security Research 
Hardware Security
Exploitation 

Of course, you can share your focus and studies more than 1 topic simultaneously.  

If you are thinking of using Kali to start your studies, you should visit the link http://docs.kali.org.
In this link there is a lot of Kali documentation that can help you before you go to the #kali-linux channel on Freenode and ask an obvious question. Also, you can use forums.kali.org, additionally as Kali is Debian based it is a good idea to check the Debian Linux documentation if you are not familiar with this distro.


Some useful links to start you pentest journey: 


Books:
http://www.hackingexposed.com/ - Very nice book series that covers a lots different topics. 


This is another very nice book series that covers quite an amount of topics, like Mobile, Android, Cars and others, not only Web Applications, search for it.
http://www.amazon.com/Web-Application-Hackers-Handbook-Exploiting/dp/1118026470
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&amp;field-keywords=hacker%27s+handbook&amp;rh=n%3A283155%2Ck%3Ahacker%27s+handbook


http://www.amazon.com/SQL-Injection-Attacks-Defense-Second/dp/1597499633/


Also, you can google for “Pentest Kali Linux” in google, there are a lots of related books, just choose one and try.  


Links: 
One more link in the same style of this post:
https://www.corelan.be/index.php/2015/10/13/how-to-become-a-pentester/


http://www.vulnhub.com - &gt; A lots of vulnerable machines to play.
http://www.securitytube.com -&gt; A lots of security videos and tutorials. 
https://www.cybrary.it -&gt; More security videos
https://pentesterlab.com -&gt; Various pentest exercises
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hacking:_The_Art_of_Exploitation -&gt; Low Level exploitation
http://www.owasp.org
https://github.com/enaqx/awesome-pentesthttp://worldwideprogramers.blogspot.com.br/2016/07/22-hacking-sites-ctfs-and-wargames-to.html?m=1


Certifications: 
http://www.offsec.com
http://www.elearn.com
http://www.sans.org
https://www.eccouncil.org/Certification/certified-ethical-hacker


Building a pentest lab: 
https://pen-testing.sans.org/blog/2014/02/27/building-a-pen-test-infrastructure-hacking-at-home-on-the-cheap

https://community.rapid7.com/docs/DOC-2196

https://www.cybrary.it/0p3n/tutorial-for-setting-up-a-virtual-penetration-testing-lab-at-your-home/

How To Ask Questions The Smart Way:
http://www.catb.org/esr/faqs/smart-questions.html



Thanks to &lt;Illusional&gt; for the help! \o/