Penetration Testing With Kali Linux May 2026

High-level risks for non-technical stakeholders.

This is the "hacking" phase where you bypass security controls.

Use Whois , Nslookup , and theHarvester to find domain ownership, IP ranges, and employee emails without touching the target's servers. Active Recon: Use Nmap to discover open ports and services. Penetration Testing with Kali Linux

Used for cracking password hashes obtained during the assessment. 5. Post-Exploitation & Privilege Escalation Gaining a "shell" is just the start.

Comprehensive scanners that flag known vulnerabilities (CVEs). High-level risks for non-technical stakeholders

Run sudo apt update && sudo apt full-upgrade -y to ensure your toolset is current.

The go-to tool for executing exploits. Use msfconsole to search, configure, and launch attacks. Active Recon: Use Nmap to discover open ports and services

Never test a network without written authorization (Rules of Engagement). 2. Information Gathering (Reconnaissance) The goal is to map the target's footprint.