Top Tools Used in Pentesting

Shivam Chamoli - Sep 7 '23 - - Dev Community

According to Cybersecurity Ventures, the annual growth of cybercrimes is anticipated to reach $10.5 trillion by 2025. This represents a significant rise from the $6 trillion cost of cybercrime in 2021. With the increasing prevalence of cybercrimes and the potential impact of security breaches, penetration testing has become an important part of an organization's cybersecurity strategy. Using the right tools and methodologies, Penetration Testers can help identify and remediate vulnerabilities before cybercriminals can exploit them.

Image description

Penetration Testing Overview

Penetration testing or pentesting is the method of assessing the security of IT systems, networks, and applications. It involves simulating real-world attacks to detect vulnerabilities, weaknesses, and potential security risks.

10 Best Pentesting Tools

Many different penetration testing tools are available, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. Here are the ten most popular pentesting tools.

1. Zed Attack Proxy (ZAP): It is a free and open-source web application security scanner to identify potential vulnerabilities in web applications. It can also be used to intercept and modify traffic, which can help test the security of web applications.
2. Maltego: It is a powerful reconnaissance tool used for information gathering and visualizing relationships between entities.
3. Nikto: It is a free and open-source web server scanner that detects vulnerabilities, misconfigurations, and outdated software.
4. BeEF: The Browser Exploitation Framework is used to test web browser vulnerabilities and perform client-side attacks.
5. Cobalt: It is a web application security testing tool used for automating security assessments, managing vulnerabilities, and facilitating collaboration between security teams and developers.
6. Cain and Abel: It is a versatile Windows-based password recovery and cracking tool used for recovering various types of passwords, sniffing network traffic, and conducting cryptographic attacks.
7. Core Impact: It is a commercial penetration testing tool that provides a comprehensive suite of exploits and advanced testing capabilities to assess the security of networks, systems, and applications.
8. Canvas: It is also a commercial penetration testing and vulnerability assessment tool that provides various automated and manual tools for identifying vulnerabilities, exploiting them, and generating detailed reports.
9. Retina: It is a commercial vulnerability management and penetration testing tool used for identifying security vulnerabilities in networks, systems, and web applications, providing comprehensive scanning and reporting capabilities.
10. Intruder: It is a cloud-based automated penetration testing tool to identify vulnerabilities in web applications and APIs through continuous scanning, vulnerability detection, and customizable testing options.

Check out the related blogs:

What is Penetration Testing?
Top Tools Required to Become a Penetration Tester
Protect Your Organization with Pen Testing

Penetration Testing with InfosecTrain

Enroll in one of InfosecTrain’s penetration testing training courses to learn penetration testing and gain access to the newest hacking techniques and tools. Learn the best practices from our certified and experienced trainers. We provide various training courses to help you enhance your penetration testing skills, including:

CompTIA PenTest+
Network Penetration Testing
Web Application Penetration Testing
Advanced Penetration Testing
We also provide customized training courses like the PenTester combo training course.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .