Most people imagine hackers working in some sort of dark room, furiously typing on their keyboard, rapidly entering codes on the screen, until finally breaching all systems, stealing data, and doing whatever they need to do.
It seems very glamorous. Sadly, real hacking is far less glamorous.
Real hacking isn't a flash of brilliance, where a hacker breaches a system in seconds. Real hacking is slow, logical, and structured. Experienced hackers think strategically, and understand how systems work. This guide is intended to give you the information you need about what hacking is like and how it's done, with examples and defensive tips included.
⚠️Important: This article should be used strictly for informational purposes. All information here must be applied in a lawful manner only.
🔍 Step 1: Reconnaissance (Information Gathering)
As always, it starts with collecting information. The more information a hacker collects beforehand, the easier the process itself is going to be.
🧠 Information Collected
At this step, any type of information may be collected, but most commonly it includes:
Domain information (such as domain name)
IP address
All subdomains (admin.example.com, support.example.com)
Which software is used (WordPress, PHP, Apache etc.)
Emails and LinkedIn accounts of employees, etc.
🛠 Tools Used During Reconnaissance
Some examples include:
WHOIS service (for gathering domain information)
Nslookup
theHarvester (for finding emails and subdomains)
Advanced searches in Google (aka Google Dorking)
💡 Example
For example, someone decides to conduct reconnaissance on example.com. To do that, he/she may enter:
site:example.com filetype:sql
And if such file existed, then it could easily show up in the search results.
This isn't technically an attack yet. This is simply searching for the information available online.
🎯 Types of Reconnaissance
Passive: no interaction with a potential victim. Very hard to detect.
Active: involves direct interaction with a target (i.e. trying to access ports on the server).
📌 Example
If some employee carelessly uploads backup files on a company website (even accidentally), a hacker can easily find them via searching Google and download sensitive information.
🌐 Step 2: Scanning & Enumeration
Once hackers have enough information about a targeted system, they start actively scanning it to determine what services are available.
🔎 Goal of Scanning
During scanning hackers want to find out:
Which ports are open
Which services are running
System configuration, and
Potential entry points.
🛠 Scanning Tools
Among the popular scanning tools are:
Nmap (network scanner)
Nikto (web server scanner)
Netcat (network tool).
💻 Command Example
Here is a basic command:
nmap -A target.com
It will identify open ports and show which services are running.
🔓 Information Collected
Hackers would want to find any information about a potential target such as:
Outdated software
Possible misconfigurations
Potential vulnerabilities (exposed admin interface etc.)
📌 Example
Nmap identifies that target.com has the following ports open:
22 SSH port
80 HTTP port
And an outdated version of Apache installed.
Now hackers would use this information to proceed further.
🧪 Step 3: Vulnerability Analysis
Scanning gives the information about a system. In this step, hackers analyze collected information to find possible vulnerabilities they may exploit in the future.
🧠 Common Vulnerabilities to Look For
The common vulnerabilities are:
SQL injection vulnerabilities
Cross-Site Scripting (XSS)
File upload vulnerabilities
Authentication vulnerabilities.
🛠 Vulnerability Analysis Tools
Popular vulnerability analysis tools include:
Burp Suite
OWASP ZAP
Nessus
💡 Example: SQL Injection Attack
If hackers manage to find a login form that does not validate input data, then it can be attacked. For example, if a user enters the following in the password field, he will be able to access the user accounts:
' OR 1=1 --
📌 Example Scenario
A vulnerable login form allows any user to perform actions without providing a correct password.
💣 Step 4: Exploitation
This is the phase of the actual attack. At this point, hackers try to exploit vulnerabilities found at previous stages.
🔥 Examples of Common Attacks
1. SQL Injection
Hackers use it to gain access to databases of a company.
They will try to access and extract information such as usernames, passwords, and other sensitive information.
2. Cross-Site Scripting (XSS)
The main goal of hackers here is to plant scripts on user computers.
The result is accessing user session cookies, which means they'll have access to user accounts.
3. File upload exploits
Hackers will disguise files as images or document files.
After uploading such file to a vulnerable site, hackers will be able to execute code on the server.
📌 Example
Hackers found that the website of some company allows user to upload profile pictures. And when they tried to upload a file with the name:
shell.php
And accessed it via a browser, they found out they could execute code on the server.
Hackers now have control over a server.
🧬 Step 5: Privilege Escalation
Sometimes hackers cannot enter a target as root users. So, after gaining some level of access to a system, hackers try to escalate their privileges to full control over it.
🔓 How to Do That?
Exploit system vulnerabilities
Take advantage of weak permissions
Reuse obtained credentials
🎯 Goal of Privilege Escalation
Hackers usually want to become:
Administrators of a computer/server
Root users (Linux system)
📌 Example
Let's continue our previous example. Our hacker was able to log in as a simple user. But they've found a file that allows editing some system configuration settings. So they used this file to become an administrator.
🕵️ Step 6: Maintain Access
After successfully breaching the system, hackers try to ensure they have persistent access to it.
🛠 Maintaining Access Methods
Hackers try to maintain access in the following ways:
Installing backdoors and other software
Setting up remote access channels (e.g. establishing reverse shell connection)
Creating hidden administrator accounts, etc.
💡 Example
Our hacker created another administrative account that didn't show up in the admin panel of the website.
Even if hackers manage to fix initial vulnerabilities, they'll still be able to log in.
🧹 Step 7: Covering Tracks
This step may come both before and after all previous ones. If the hack attempt failed or was successful, experienced hackers cover their tracks.
🔥 Methods Used by Hackers
Deleting logs
Altering timestamps
Hiding malicious files, etc.
🧠 Why do They Do This?
The goal of covering tracks is to prevent:
Detection by the system security team
Successful investigation by investigators.
📊 Real-World Attack Flow Summary
As you can see, the whole attack flow looks like this:
Reconnaissance → Scanning → Vulnerability analysis → Exploitation → Privilege escalation → Maintain access → Cover tracks
This process is usually called "Cyber Kill Chain."
🛡️ How to Protect Your Website
The only thing worse than being hacked is getting hacked again and again. But understanding how it happens won't help much if you don't know how to prevent hacks.
🔐 Tip #1. Keep Your Systems Updated
Outdated software is one of the most easy ways to access systems. Thus, keep your system updated by:
Regularly updating CMS platforms (WordPress, Magento)
Updating plugins
Updating server software, etc.
🔒 Tip #2. Use Strong Passwords
Hackers usually first try to brute-force the login of the system. Avoid using simple and predictable passwords, such as:
admin123
password
password123
Either choose strong, unique, and complex passwords or use a password manager.
🛠 Tip #3. Install Web Application Firewall (WAF)
WAF will filter out any suspicious and potentially dangerous requests to your website.
🧪 Tip #4. Perform Regular Tests on Websites
Regular testing with the following tools can help prevent attacks:
OWASP ZAP
Nikto
📁 Tip #5. Secure File Uploads
Set up restrictions on file uploads (file extensions, file size);
Check files for malicious code before allowing uploads.
🌐 Tip #6. Implement HTTPS Encryption
With HTTPS, data is encrypted between end users and a server, making interception attempts harder.
🧠 Tip #7. Input Validation
Make sure your website is validating user inputs to prevent:
SQL Injection
XSS attacks
🧑🎓 Beginner Guide: How to Get into Ethical Hacking
If you've read all previous chapters, you now understand how hackers attack websites. But in order to prevent them, you should become an ethical hacker yourself. Here is how you do that.
📘 Step 1. Start Learning Fundamentals
First of all, learn:
Networking principles;
Linux systems;
Web technologies.
🛠 Step 2. Start Learning Tools
Get familiar with the following hacking tools:
Nmap
Burp Suite
Wireshark, and
Other similar tools.
But note that you shouldn't focus on learning tools only.
🛡 Step 3. Test in Controlled Environment
TryHackMe is one of the popular platforms where you can practice hacking in a controlled environment.
🏆 Step 4. Join CTF Competitions
CTF competitions are good practice for developing hacking skills.
🎯 Step 5. Participate in Bug Bounty Programs
Some companies even pay for vulnerabilities in their sites.
💥 Tips for Beginners: Don't Make These Common Mistakes
If you start learning hacking skills right away, you will probably be struggling to progress. Here are the mistakes you shouldn't make as a beginner:
Starting with advanced techniques without basics
Learning only tools
Failing to learn fundamentals
Conducting illegal attacks (will get you into big trouble)
🧪 Extended Example: Full Website Attack Flow
Let's look at how a typical hacker will breach a website from the beginning to end.
First of all, the attacker starts with reconnaissance:
Reconnaissance
Learns that the website runs on WordPress;
Finds the admin panel URL (http://example.com/wp-admin/)
Finds some public emails;
Then the hacker proceeds with scanning:
Scanning
Manages to find an open HTTP port on the target;
Manages to find a vulnerable plugin installed on it.
Next hacker proceeds with analyzing the vulnerability:
Vulnerability Analysis
Analyzes a plug-in and learns it has an already exploited vulnerability.
Hackers proceed with exploiting the vulnerability to gain access:
Exploitation
Uploads a malicious script to the target.
After gaining access, the attacker proceeds to escalate his/her rights:
Privilege Escalation
Becomes an administrator of the website.
To maintain his/her access to the system:
Maintain Access
Creates a hidden admin account;
Finally, the hacker covers tracks to prevent detection:
Covering Tracks
Deletes log files
Removes logs.
All of this could happen just because of an outdated plugin.
🚀 Content Tips (If You're Writing About Hacking)
If you are writing an article on this topic, you could consider including the following elements:
Screenshot of tools used
Code snippets of commands and tools output
Some practical case studies
Visuals to explain each step.
Here are some possible article titles:
"I Tested My Own Website Security – Here's What I Found"
"Beginner to Ethical Hacker: A Step-by-Step Guide"
🔚 Conclusion
From the above article, we've learned that hacking doesn't require luck or quick thinking. Hackers use slow, logical and strategic methods to breach systems. And the way they hack websites consists of 7 major steps.
The key thing you should know about hackers is that they think logically.
Hacking requires a lot of skills that are not only important for hackers, but also for other specialists. The same knowledge can be used in two very different fields:
Securing websites
Building cybersecurity career