The best way to check the network’s security is by trying to hack it. In the past, HackMag had published materials about auditing Wi-Fi networks. Unfortunately, such guides quickly become obsolete. Today, I will share some practical and up-to-date experience in this area.
Bug hunt. Spying devices and how to detect them
One might think that bugs from spy movies got obsolete nowadays. Who needs this stuff if microphones and cameras are everywhere – in laptops, smartphones, and zillions of other devices? However, in most cases, it is more difficult to get access to these gadgets than to the physical space where they are located. Here is where miniature, barely visible, and top-notch equipment comes into play. Let’s try to find out whether ordinary people should be concerned about spying tools potentially used against them and what security precautions should be taken, if any.
The great mischief. Working your way to the root flag through IPv6 labyrinths on a Hack the Box virtual machine
In this article, I will explain how to gain superuser privileges on Mischief VM available on Hack The Box training grounds. During this journey, you will acquire some SNMP skills, understand the IPv6 routing principles, and learn how to deal with the access control list (ACL) regulating the files and folders permissions. In the end, I will show how to write an ICMP shell in Python and test it.
Secrets of the treasurer’s laptop: digital forensic analysis helps solve cybercrime
“Where’s the money?” Or, rather, “Where did the money go?” The user of a company-owned Windows 10 laptop fell victim of a cyberfraud attack. Or maybe the employee faked it and stole the money while pointing fingers to “evil hackers”? We’ll sure find out.
Universal interception. How to bypass SSL Pinning and monitor traffic of any application
In many cases, the research of an app’s internal structure can be narrowed down to monitoring its traffic. Just a few years ago, a major share of the traffic was transmitted via the plain, easily interceptable HTTP protocol. By now, HTTPS has become the standard in most applications as a part of the defense mechanisms against eavesdropping. Today, I will try to explain what the different defense approaches have in common and whether their common component can be used to create a universal HTTPS interception technique.
Protecting microcontrollers. Implementing Firmware Hardening and Secure Boot on STM32
The intensity of attacks targeting IoT devices increases with year over year. New threats require a complex approach; as a result, security became the top priority for both software developers and hardware manufacturers. This article addresses the primary vectors of attacks against smart gadgets and describes some firmware and data protection techniques using a Nucleo development board equipped with an STM32H743 microcontroller as an example.
Where to study pentesting? An overview of training grounds for ethical hackers
Today, I will give a brief overview of some of the best pentesting portals recognized by security experts. These training grounds enable ethical hackers to polish their skills while preserving ‘ethicality’ and exploit newly-discovered vulnerabilities while staying within the bounds of the law.