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

Chapter 17: Maintaining Access

We’ve been on a long journey together through these chapters. It’s fitting that we end up here, asking the remaining question after you’ve forced your way in and proven there’s a gap in the client’s defense – how do I keep my access? This is a funny question because it’s often neglected, despite its importance. When a lot of people talk about hacking computers, they think about the excitement of working your way up to breaking open the door. Hacking is problem solving, and sometimes it’s easy to forget that being able to persist our access is a problem in its own right. In the context of penetration testing in particular, persistence can be easily taken for granted because we’re often working on tight schedules. Sometimes, it seems like there’s a race to get domain admin or root, and then we just stop there to wrap up the report. It’s a shame that assessments are often...