I would like to eventually go into computer security. Need some advice.

Hi ATSers.

I am posting this thread on here because I really need some advice on where to start for "ethical" hacking and computer security. Is there any advice you techies could give me? Books, websites, videos, and other info would be greatly appreciated! Thanks

-Zeta

Google Kali Linux - go to their page and begin reading as much as is there. Their flavor used to be called "Backtrack Linux" and that site has a lot of great tutorials.

If you're not familiar with Linux - learn it.

Google "white hat" and read as many blogs as you can find. Some will be great, others not. Sifting through it all, you will get a feel.

Oh, and be very careful. The criminal penalties for many kinds of hacking are severe and can involve lengthy prison sentences ( longer than murderers get quite often ) or even the death penalty in certain countries.

dont do it,

i have been working with computers for over 20 years

it sucks the soul from you!!!!

lol

I heard symantec sends out all the viruses,maybe check with them

Much like any other skilled activity, its all about spending lots of hours DOING, not reading.
With computer security, its going to involve you deciding which area to specialise in, and building one (or more) of those systems in your spare bedroom to practise with.

May want to go to college and earn your computer science degree with a focus on security. I'm sure after that you will have a pretty good idea where to specialize.

Get a degree in computer science, then go to work for

these guys

or

these guys,

or

these guys.

Alternatively, if you want a rewarding but somewhat less directly governmental job that you can't tell your kids about later, try

these guys,

these guys,

these guys,

these guys,

or

these guys.

I guarantee any of them can make your wish come true.

What is your "official" level of skill currently?
If you have none, first I would recomend this a starter-stepping stone:
CompTIA A+ Certification
CompTIA A+ Cert guide

After that I would start applying for computer repair shops, at an intern/starter position (probably answering tech calls/taking notes) while moving on, in the mean time, to this:
CompTIA Security +

And last but not least:

Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert (MCSE)


A degree in the IT field would also be very beneficial in getting you a good job, somewhere in between one of those certs.
Getting those firs two certs first will help get you a starter position in a real tech job in the IT field, it may not be great, but it gives you real life experience, and you will eventually move up the ladder (assuming you do your best) which will increase your chances of getting another job in the IT field by a lot.

reply to post by ZetaExplorer15


Anymore just about anyone can become an CEH you just have to take a certification course. Many courses come with software and there is high dollar software to test system vulnerability. If you want to have a good grasp of how and whys you should learn programming and coding. It depends on the exact type of work and firm you want to work for. There are a number of CEH certification programs, each being slightly different. This is one.

reply to post by Bedlam


Thank you for those sites. I will check them out!

Thanks for the great replies!

Skip all that and go into a trade.

reply to post by ZetaExplorer15


If you are truly interested I suggest a degree program - Pace offers a telecommunications and network security degree
www.pace.edu...
maybe check out what the program offers and see if this is a fit for you