Book Image

Windows and Linux Penetration Testing from Scratch - Second Edition

By : Phil Bramwell
Book Image

Windows and Linux Penetration Testing from Scratch - Second Edition

By: Phil Bramwell

Overview of this book

Let’s be honest—security testing can get repetitive. If you’re ready to break out of the routine and embrace the art of penetration testing, this book will help you to distinguish yourself to your clients. This pen testing book is your guide to learning advanced techniques to attack Windows and Linux environments from the indispensable platform, Kali Linux. You'll work through core network hacking concepts and advanced exploitation techniques that leverage both technical and human factors to maximize success. You’ll also explore how to leverage public resources to learn more about your target, discover potential targets, analyze them, and gain a foothold using a variety of exploitation techniques while dodging defenses like antivirus and firewalls. The book focuses on leveraging target resources, such as PowerShell, to execute powerful and difficult-to-detect attacks. Along the way, you’ll enjoy reading about how these methods work so that you walk away with the necessary knowledge to explain your findings to clients from all backgrounds. Wrapping up with post-exploitation strategies, you’ll be able to go deeper and keep your access. By the end of this book, you'll be well-versed in identifying vulnerabilities within your clients’ environments and providing the necessary insight for proper remediation.
Table of Contents (23 chapters)
1
Part 1: Recon and Exploitation
9
Part 2: Vulnerability Fundamentals
17
Part 3: Post-Exploitation

Summary

In this chapter, we explored Windows kernel attacks. First, we reviewed the theory behind how the kernel works and what attackers try to leverage to pull off these attacks. Included in this theoretical discussion was a review of the low-level management role of the kernel and the security implications of these tasks, including scheduling interrupts. We picked a vulnerability type, the NULL or invalid pointer dereference vulnerability, and studied it in detail to understand how exploiting the kernel in this way gives the attacker full control of the system. We started with a review of pointers in C code and then examined the compiled assembly instructions to understand how the processor deals with the pointer concept. This review prepared us to understand what NULL pointers are and how they can cause problems in software. We then introduced a specific kernel-mode driver, Win32k.sys, and did a low-level review of its pointer flaw. We wrapped up this discussion with a review of...