A Letter To Aspiring Hackers & Security Engineers

So you want to be an ethical-hacker. Why is that? Hopefully not for malicious purposes. I, in no way, claim to be the 'best' hacker in the world (I'm on way to be though), so I can't command you to follow a certain path. Everyone has their own reasons for entering the ethical-hacking world and I wouldn't have it any other way. I think it's important that people do what they love simply because thats what they're passionate about. With that being said, I can't push anyone to want to learn ethical-hacking. What I can do though is help in guiding those of you who are truly interested and guide you on the more fun (subjective), legal path of hacking. Before I do that though, I want to let you know what you're going to be up against or potentially encounter once you enter this hacking realm.

A few things:

1. The hacking community (ethical/non-ethical) will call you a script kiddie in different online spaces. Some forums are friendly and welcome new talent but others are irrationally un-friendly. Irrational because we all literally start from the same point of not knowing anything.

2. With the above ^ being the case when you join this community, you have to learn to ignore it and press on during your learning journey. This may not seem like a big deal and it may not be for you, but its something that could potentially stifle you along the way. You may begin to have doubts in your ability to learn the necessary skills to be an ethical-hacker. You're more capable than you know. The true test lies in how you respond to your self-doubt and doubt that may come from the community.

3. As I've said before, at some point you realize that literally every hacker that has ever existed was once a newb. No one pops out of the womb knowing computer science, and knowing how to break into servers. Don't believe the hype. With this in mind, learn about all the tools that are interesting to you! Not the community. Suggestions from the community are always helpful but when you have fun learning the material, you're more likely to retain more of the information and more likely to keep returning to it, only to become skilled in really using the tools.

4. People in your life that are not in the information security field or ethical-hacking realm are gonna start to think one of two things: either you're some kind of computer genius (maybe you are) or that you're gonna try to break into their bank account; don't let it go to your head. There's nothing cute or interesting about a cocky hacker who appears to be a know-it-all or one that's a thief. This can affect your own ethical-hacking circle as you start to meet more people in the field. Being that technology is always changing, you have to be in a constant state of learning and part of that learning is going to come from other people around you/you teaching them. If you get to a place of no longer learning along the way, then you'll simply be a mediocre ethical-hacker. No one wants to learn from or teach a cocky mofo. And if you only like to break into systems without permission then be prepared to potentially go to jail where you can't hack at all. Be humble and use your common sense along the way.

5. Lastly but certainly not least, be prepared to commit to learning for as long as your career shall last. You could end up being 90 years old and have broken into every server imaginable on the planet but there will always be something you missed or didn't learn or a zero day waiting to be exploited. Have a growth mindset over a fixed mindset (google it).

Take notice that I didn't say very much about the tools you should use in starting or continuing your journey (that'll be a later blog post). This is because I recognize that it all starts with curiosity, passion, and grit. Be ready to dive in mentally and creatively. Your journey is what you make it. I wish you all the luck!

Happy Hacking! - -Ethically.

Signed_

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