In order to maintain an active and effective defense against cyber criminals, it’s important to understand the tools available that criminals are using to hack into your company’s networks. A variety of free tools are available online and easy to acquire by hackers to help them access your valuable company information.
Top Hacker Tools
Below are ten examples of tools that cyber criminals are using regularly:
- Shodan is a search engine that lets the user find specific types of computers (routers, servers, etc.) connected to the internet. A quick search for “default password” reveals printers, servers and system control devices that use “admin” as their user name and “1234” as their password. Many more connected systems require no credentials, and all you need is a Web browser to connect to them.
- Nmap (“Network Mapper”) rapidly scans large networks to determine what hosts are available on a network, what services (application name and version) those hosts are offering, what operating systems (and OS versions) they are running, what type of packet filters/firewalls are in use, and more.
- JTR (“John the Ripper”) is a fast password cracker and detects weak passwords.
- P0f is versatile Operating System identification tool.
- Yersinia is a network tool designed to take advantage of some weaknesses in different Layer Two protocols.
- Eraser allows sensitive data to be completely removed from a hard drive by overwriting it several times with carefully selected patterns.
- Cain and Abel is a password recovery tool for Microsoft Operating Systems. It allows easy recovery of various kind of passwords by sniffing the network, cracking encrypted passwords using Dictionary, Brute-Force and Cryptanalysis attacks, recording VoIP conversations, decoding scrambled passwords, revealing password boxes, uncovering cached passwords and analyzing routing protocols.
- Kismet is a Layer Two wireless network sniffer.
- Reaver is a Wi-Fi WPS-password guessing attack tool. With this tool pointed toward a typical Wi-Fi router, the router coughs up its protection in less than a day
- Pixie Dust is another Wi-Fi password cracking too for WPS (Wi-Fi Protected Setup).
Defending Your Private Data from Hackers
Being aware of the tools available to hackers is only one part of the cyber threats puzzle. None of this matters if your company does not have proper defense mechanisms in place to thwart cybercrime.
Below are some key ways to defend against cyber criminals trying to expose security vulnerabilities:
- Keep your computer up-to-date with security patches and software updates
- Maintain a strong password and change it regularly
- Use caution when sharing any personal or company information online
- Keep a close eye on financial statements for irregular activity
- Back up your files
- Visit secure websites
How NetWatcher Helps
Through continuous monitoring, NetWatcher serves as a watchdog for your data and network 24×7. NetWatcher identifies potential threats and vulnerabilities that are being created both from employees and external entities, and enables you to remediate issues quickly. In addition, NetWatcher provides a real-time view of the security posture of your network hygiene, including weak passwords, assets, unsafe employee behavior, and outdated software.
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