Top 20 Ethical Hacking Tools and Software in 2024

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Computing has included hacking for about five decades, and it is a fairly broad field that covers a wide range of issues. At MIT, the name “Hacker” was coined at the same time as the first known instance of hacking, which occurred in 1960. In this blog, you will learn a bit about Ethical Hacking and more about the Tools and Software used for Hacking.

What is Ethical Hacking?

The act of ethical hacking entails an authorized attempt to gain unauthorized access to a computer system, application, or data. It involves copying the tactics and behaviors of malicious attackers to carry out an ethical hack. By doing so, security flaws can be found and fixed before a malicious attacker has a chance to take advantage of them.

What does an Ethical Hacker do?

Security experts that perform these security reviews are ethical hackers, commonly known as “white hats.” Through their proactive actions, they help to improve the security posture of a business. Ethical hacking has a different aim than malevolent hacking because it is done with authorization from the company or person who is the owner of the IT asset.

What are Ethical Hacking Tools and Software?

The software and techniques used by hackers to identify vulnerabilities in computer operating systems, a variety of web applications, servers, and networks are nothing more than computer programs or a sophisticated form of script created by developers.

To protect their data from hackers, many employers nowadays, particularly in the banking industry, use ethical hacking tools.

Hacking tools can be purchased or downloaded in open source (shareware or freeware) or commercial solutions. If someone wishes to use such tools maliciously, they can easily be downloaded via the browser.

Need for Ethical Hacking Software

When it comes to hacking software, we frequently experience fear or paranoia that it would harm our computer system.

But because reality is so different, employers could want a skilled expert to safeguard sensitive information about crucial company assets, hardware, and software systems against hackers.

As a result, ethical hacking has become so necessary and evident that businesses have begun to employ them.

Despite this, network administration has expanded significantly during the past few years. Initially just used to monitor networks, it can now also be used to control firewalls, intrusion detection systems (IDS), VPNs, anti-virus programs, and anti-spam filters.

It is advisable to keep in mind that the hacking software indicated below offers a variety of functions because there are numerous phases and categories of possible attacks in digital hacking.

Here are the Top 20 Ethical Hacking Tools & Software in 2024

1. Nmap(Network Mapper)

In its simplest form, Nmap is a network security mapper that can find hosts and services on a network and build a network map as a result. Several capabilities provided by this program aid in host finding, operating system detection, and network probing.

 The sophisticated vulnerability identification offered by the script’s extensibility also allows it to adjust its scanning to network conditions like latency and congestion.

Key Features

The key features of Nmap’s ethical hacking software are

• Flexible: Supports a wide range of cutting-edge approaches for navigating networks with IP filters, firewalls, routers, and other barriers.
• Portable: It supports the majority of operating systems, such as Linux, Microsoft Windows, FreeBSD, OpenBSD, Solaris, IRIX, Mac OS X, HP-UX, NetBSD, Sun OS, Amiga, and others.
• Powerful: Nmap has been used to scan enormous networks with literally hundreds of thousands of devices.
• Free: The Nmap Project’s main objectives are to give administrators, auditors, and hackers a cutting-edge tool for network exploration and to contribute to the improvement of Internet security a little bit. The complete source code for Nmap is included in the free download and is permissible for modification and redistribution by the license.

2. Invicti

A precise ethical hacking tool called Invicti imitates a hacker’s movements to find vulnerabilities in web apps and web APIs like SQL Injection and Cross-site Scripting.

You do not need to waste hours manually confirming the discovered vulnerabilities after a scan is complete because Invicti uniquely checks them to show they are real and not false positives. Both a Windows program and an online service are accessible.

Key Features

The key features include

• Discover and Crawl: Regardless of the technologies, frameworks, or languages you employ, crawl and check every possible entry point for attackers.
• Detect Vulnerabilities: With industry-leading scan accuracy, Invicti can help you find security problems that other scanners miss.
• Resolve Vulnerabilities: Eliminate false positives. Provide developers with the details they require to address each problem fast. Gain greater control over your repair procedure.
• Integrate Security into Development: Connect Invicti to the resources your developers regularly utilize. Automatically classify and designate the appropriate developer for known, high-risk vulnerabilities.
• Continuously Secure: Constantly emerging vulnerabilities. Utilize features that keep you in the lead, such as ongoing scans, to remain vigilant.

3. Intruder

With the help of Intruder, a potent vulnerability scanner, security flaws in your current IT environment are found. It clarifies the hazards and aids in their mitigation, making it the ideal complement to your collection of ethical hacking tools.

Discover security flaws including incorrect setups, omitted patches, insufficient encryption, and application problems, including SQL Injection, Cross-Site Scripting, the OWASP Top 10, and more.

Key Features

The key features are

• Surface Monitoring: The systems’ automatic threat detection aids in protecting the IT environment. Additionally, it issues alarms when services are modified and ports are exposed.
• Intelligent Results are Provided: Get prioritized actionable results according to the circumstance. You can concentrate on the problems that matter, like exposed databases, because Intruder understands the raw data it receives from top scanning engines.
• Effortless Compliance and Reporting: Helps to ace client security audits and compliance checks. It even improves cyber hygiene and automates management reports.
• Penetration Testing: Step outside of automated scanning. Increase the efficiency of finding, analyzing, and fixing significant issues by adding our qualified security professionals to your team.

4. Nessus

Next on the list of ethical hacking tools is Nessus. It is designed from the ground up with an in-depth knowledge of how security practitioners operate.

The goal of every function of Nessus is to make vulnerability evaluation simple, straightforward, and intuitive. As a result, evaluating, prioritizing, and fixing problems takes less time and effort.

Key Features

The key features of Nessus are

• Accuracy and Efficiency: To speed up the first scan’s completion and time to value, dynamically compiled plugins improve scan performance and efficiency.
• Ease of Usage: Nessus is made with a user-friendly and intuitive design in mind. This features a resource center that will provide you with helpful advice and direction on what to do next.
• Platform: It can be deployed on various platforms. It is completely portable.
• Policies and Templates: You can find more than 450 pre-configured policies and templates helping you to understand the vulnerabilities.

5. Acunetix

Acunetix is an entirely automated ethical hacking system that imitates a hacker to stay one step ahead of malicious invaders. The single-page applications, HTML5, JavaScript, and the web application security scanner are all thoroughly scanned.

On a variety of web and network vulnerabilities, it can audit sophisticated, authenticated web apps and produce compliance and management reports.

Key Features

The key features of this ethical hacking software are

• Detect Vulnerabilities: It detects around 7000 vulnerabilities that include, XSS, SQL injections, weak passwords, etc.
• Scanning: It scans all the pages including web apps and complex web applications.
• Macro reading: This technology will help you to scan password-protected sites and multi-level forms.
• Easy to use: You can set it up and start to scan in a few clicks.

6. Nikto

Nikto is an Open Source web server scanner that runs thorough tests on web servers for a variety of things, including over 6700 potentially harmful files/programs, checks for out-of-date versions on over 1250 sites, and version-specific issues on over 270 servers.

Additionally, it looks for server configuration details like the existence of numerous index files and HTTP server options, as well as makes an effort to locate any installed web servers and applications.

Key Features

Here are some of the key features of Nikto’s ethical hacking software.

• Checking: It checks for any outdated server components.
• Customization: Simple report customization using a template engine.
• Scan: Scan several ports on a server or several servers using an input file.
• False positive reduction: It uses a variety of techniques including content hashing, page content, and headers to enhance false positive reduction.
• Identify Installed Software: Usees files, favicons, and headers to identify installed software.

7. Netstumbler

Since a few years ago, consumers have valued NetStumbler as one of the greatest ethical hacking tools for finding WLANs that adhere to the 802.11b, 802.11a, and 802.11g specifications.

The application runs a quick check, displaying all of the networks that are now active in the area that the receptor can receive and the states in which they are present.

Key Features

Here are some of the key features of Netstumbler’s ethical hacking software.

• Access Point: It identifies the AP(Access Point) network configuration.
• Identification: It helps in identifying the interference’s causes.
• Signal strength: Determining the signal intensity received.
• Discover: It helps in discovering unapproved access points.

8. Fortify WebInspect

With the help of ethical hacking techniques, FortifyWebInspect automates dynamic application security testing. It is one of the greatest hacking tools available for providing a thorough dynamic analysis of intricate online services and applications.

Key Features

The key features of Fortify WebInspect hacking software are

• Security Testing: All the functional tests can be taken and used by FAST(Functional Application Security Testing)  in the same manner as IAST, but it then continues to crawl. FAST won’t miss anything, even if a practical test does.
• Manage security risk: To meet DevOps requirements, keep an eye on application trends and take action on the most important vulnerabilities.
• Flexible Deployment: With the flexibility of on-premise, SaaS, or AppSec-as-a-service, start quickly and scale as necessary.
• Increase Speed: Using Kubernetes, horizontal scaling generates little replicas of WebInspect that only handle JavaScript. As a result, scans can go more quickly because they can operate concurrently.

9. Burp Suite

Burp Suite is an effective tool for security testing web applications. Its many hacking tools integrate perfectly to assist the complete pen testing procedure. It includes initial mapping and attack surface analysis for applications.

No matter what their use case, Burp Suite helps its users to speed up application security testing. However, there are many reasons why you’ll adore Burp Suite Professional if you perform security testing as part of your line of work.

Key Features

 The key features of Burp Suite are

• Automation: Integrate manual tooling with automated and semi-automated procedures to uncover more vulnerabilities faster.
• Productivity: Profit from the toolbox created and employed by qualified testers. More efficiently test, report, and correct.
• Customization: A toolbox designed for customization. Utilize BApp extensions and an effective API to expand on the automated Burp Suite functionalities.
• Scanning: One of the top hacking tools, it offers manual testers an advanced scanning feature.

10. Wireshark

Wireshark is the most famous and commonly used network protocol analyzer in the world. It is the de facto (and frequently de jure) standard across many commercial and non-profit firms, governmental organizations, and educational institutions because it enables you to observe what’s happening on your network at a microscopic level.

Key Features

The key features of Wireshark are

• Deep Inspection: Thorough examination of hundreds of protocols are done and new ones are added regularly.
• Live Capture: Live recording and offline evaluation
• Runs on multiple-platform: Runs on a variety of operating systems, including Windows, Linux, macOS, Solaris, FreeBSD, and NetBSD.
• Display: It has the strongest display filters available on the market

11. Cain & Abel

Microsoft Windows has a password recovery tool called Cain and Abel. It can decrypt a variety of password hashes using techniques including dictionary attacks, brute force, and cryptanalysis attacks, as well as methods like network packet sniffing.

Key Features

The key features of this hacking software are

• Speed: Wireless packet injection to increase the speed of packet capture.
• Decode: It deciphers the encrypted passwords.
• Dumping: dumping passwords for secure storage
• Passwords: Employing dictionary attacks, brute-force attacks, and cryptanalysis attempts to decrypt encrypted passwords.

12. Aircrack-ng

As more people utilize wireless networks, it’s crucial to maintain Wi-Fi security. A selection of command-line tools that examine and assess Wi-Fi network security are available from Aircrack-Ng for ethical hackers.

Aircrack-Ngis committed to the activities like attacking, monitoring, testing, and cracking. The program is compatible with Windows, OS X, Linux, eComStation, 2Free BSD, NetBSD, OpenBSD, and Solaris.

Key Features

The key features of the Aircrack-ng hacking tool are

• Monitoring: Capturing packets and exporting data to text files for processing by external tools.
• Attacking: Utilizing packet injection, attacks such as replays, deauthentication, fake access points, and others.
• Testing: checking the capability of the driver and the WiFi cards
• Support: It supports multiple platforms and operating systems.

13. Solarwinds Security Event Manager

The utility SolarWinds Security Event Manager aids in enhancing your computer security. This program can monitor security protocols, automatically detect threats, and safeguard your network.

Key Features

The key features of Solarwinds hacking software are

• Detection: It detects threats automatically and responds accordingly.
• File integrity: Has built-in monitoring of file integrity.
• Memory: This is among the top SIEM tools for managing memory stick storage.
• Licensing: It has affordable licensing and is easy to use.

14. Ettercap

Ettercap is a comprehensive suite for man-in-the-middle attacks. It includes live connection sniffing, on-the-fly content screening, and many more intriguing gimmicks. It has various features for network and host investigation and enables both active and passive dissection of a wide range of protocols.

Key Features

The key features of the Ettercap hacking tool are

• Data: One of the best hacking tools available, it enables HTTP SSL encrypted data sniffing even when a proxy connection is used.
• Live connection: While keeping the connection live, characters can be injected into the server or the client.
• Protocol dissection: One of the top hacking tools, it enables both active and passive protocol dissection.
• Plugins: Enables building custom plugins with Ettercap’s API.

15. Angry IP Scanner

Angry IP Scanner is an open-source, cross-platform network scanner with a focus on speed and ease of use. Along with many other functions, it searches ports and IP addresses.

Network administrators and merely interested individuals utilize it frequently all around the world, in both large and small businesses, banks, and governmental organizations. It supports various platforms and runs on Linux, Windows, and Mac OS X.

Key Features

The key features of this hacking tool are

• Scan: It helps you to scan both the local network and the Internet.
• Formatting: It exports the obtained results into many formats.
• Free: Angry IP Scanner is a free and open-source hacking tool.
• Interface: It offers a command-line interface.

16. Live Action

It is among the top hacking tools for ethical hacking. With the broad visibility Omnipeek offers, it addresses performance concerns and lowers security risk. One of the greatest hacking programs, it uses LiveAction packet intelligence to more quickly and effectively analyze network problems.

Key Features

The key features of this hacking tool are

• Security issues: This hacking tool gives a quick fix for network and security issues.
• Data collection: LiveAction automates the network data collection necessary to promptly evaluate security alarms.
• Software: It is an easy-to-use and powerful network forensic software.
• Workflow: Simple to use logical workflow.

17. QualysGuard

By automating all aspects of IT system and web application audits, compliance, and protection, the Qualys Cloud Platform and its connected apps assist enterprises in streamlining security operations and reducing the cost of compliance. It is one of the best hacking tools for checking vulnerabilities in online cloud systems.

Key Features

The key features of this hacking tool are

• Globally trusted: Qualys is one of the best globally trusted online hacking tools.
• Coverage: It performs scans for every vulnerability in the Qualys Knowledgebase for both the web apps and IT infrastructure.
• Threat assessment: Your view of the assets and web applications being monitored is unified and streamlined with Qualys Community Edition.
• Vulnerability management: Unlimited vulnerability scanning for as many as 16 internal assets and 3 external assets

18. L0phtCrack

L0pht crack is a password auditing and recovery program. By utilizing dictionary, brute-force, hybrid, and rainbow tables, it is used to evaluate the security of passwords and occasionally to recover forgotten Microsoft Windows passwords.

Key Features

The key features of this hacking tool are

• Automated: Plan complex tasks for an automated enterprise-wide password system.
• Optimization: Support for multiple GPUs and many cores aids in hardware optimization.
• Fixing: Fix password issues by restricting accounts or requiring password resets.
• Customization: It is easily customizable.

19. Metasploit

Metasploit empowers and equips defenders to always be one step (or two) ahead of the game. It assists security teams in more ways than only verifying vulnerabilities, managing security assessments, and improving security awareness.

Key Features

The key features of Metasploit hacking software are

• Modules: It has MetaModules for specialized activities, like network segmentation testing.
• Network scan: It imports data from a network scan.
• Automate: Closed-Loop vulnerability validation to identify the most urgent problems.
• Infiltrate: Dynamic payloads to avoid the most effective antivirus programs.

20. John the Ripper

John the Ripper is a Free and open source that is available as source code. If you’d prefer to utilize a paid product, John the Ripper Pro would be a good option. It’s typically offered as “native” packages for the target operating systems, and it’s generally intended to be simpler to install and use while still providing the best speed.

Key Features

The key features of John the Ripper hacking software are

• Testing: It helps you to test different types of encrypted passwords.
• Customization: Provides a customizable cracker and a variety of password crackers in a single package.
• Attacks: Carries out dictionary attacks

How to become an Ethical Hacker?

If you don’t know anything about computer science, getting a degree is the greatest method to become an ethical hacker. You can earn an IT certification by enrolling in any certification course. One such course is offered by Henry Harvin.

The Certified Ethical Hacking Course by Henry Harvin is intended to assist students in mastering the fundamental skills and methods of ethical hacking, including network packet analysis, penetration testing, enumeration, sniffing, vulnerability analysis, and SQL injection.

Conclusion

End users have consistently been the weakest points via which fraudsters can breach even the most advanced protections. In the recent past, many big companies have disclosed significant security breaches. Tools for ethical hacking help companies identify potential internet security flaws and stop data breaches.

Recommended Reads

• Best Ethical Hacking Books
• Ethical Hacking Courses Online
• Interview questions for Ethical Hacking
• Cyber Security Courses in Nigeria

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