A white hat hacker, or ethical hacker, uses penetration testing techniques to test an organization’s IT security and to identify vulnerabilities. IT security staff then uses the results of such penetration tests to remediate vulnerabilities, strengthen security and lower an organization’s risk factors.
Penetration testing is never a casual undertaking. It involves lots of planning, which includes getting explicit permission from management to perform tests, and then running tests as safely as possible. These tests often involve the very same techniques that attackers use to breach a network for real.
