Learn more about the 5 best devices a hacker should know to hone his skills.

Maybe you’re an ethical hacker looking for your first device. Maybe you’ve been hacking for years, but could use some new tools in your arsenal. 

In either case, you’ll find the perfect device for you on this list. Each of these devices will help you hone your skills as an ethical hacker and give you new ways to test and expand your abilities as a hacker.

WiFi Pineapple

Hak5's Wi-Fi Pineapple is a wireless auditing device that allows network administrators to conduct penetration tests, a form of ethical hacking in which white-hat hackers seek out security flaws that black-hat hackers might exploit.

By using the WI-FI Pineapple as a rogue access point, an attacker may intercept and relay messages between two parties (man-in-the-middle attacks). An attacker with little technical knowledge may eavesdrop on public Wi-Fi networks to collect sensitive personal information, such as passwords, by using an inexpensive and user-friendly device.

Unskilled hackers may be able to exploit this device's powerful hacking capabilities thanks to its widespread accessibility, the same way a white hat hacker may utilize Pineapple in auditing security systems for this reason. 

It could be a dangerous or helpful device, depending on the user's intentions. While this tool may be used for abuse, it may also prevent abuse.

The Pineapple's UI and cost are what makes it so significant. PineAP, a set of pen testing modules available for free download, includes tools for logging, reporting, tracking, reconnaissance, and MitM attack exercises.

To protect yourself from the WiFi Pineapple, you can follow these suggestions:

• It is generally a bad idea to use public networks. Anyone can connect to them, and it is easy for a Pineapple to impersonate them.
• Having a VPN protects a user's device from transmitting its information to a Pineapple. Even if the device connects to the Pineapple, the Pineapple cannot read the data being transmitted because the data is encrypted before being sent.
• An LTE wireless network can be used to connect to the internet without using Wi-Fi, eliminating the chance that a user will connect to a fake Pineapple-generated SSID.
• Sites that offer encryption often employ HTTPS encryption. An icon showing a locked padlock in the leftmost position of the web address bar indicates that the site uses its own encryption. The presence of HTTPS, rather than HTTP, in the URL, is also a sign that the site uses its own encryption.
• Turn off the Wi-Fi functionality when you are not using it to prevent it from searching for networks to connect to automatically.

Bash Bunny

The Bash Bunny is a physical hacking tool disguised as a regular USB drive and supported by the Hak5 payload library. It is a Linux machine with all the features of a quad-core computing machine in a tiny form factor.

Bash Bunny is a tool created to be used in penetration testing and red teaming activities. It is not in itself an evil tool, it can be used for good and evil aims according to the user that operates it.

The Bash Bunny provides the world's most powerful USB attack platform if you can physically access a computer since it can emulate devices that are trusted storage devices, network devices, and input devices across platforms.

Devices running any operating system (macOS, Linux, Windows, Android) are all capable of having trusted devices—devices to which a system will grant automatic access without requiring a driver or confirmation.

Bash Bunny can impersonate all these devices, then exploit this trust by using scriptable payloads. You can easily write or customize your own payload, or use one of the hundreds available in the Bash Bunny repository.

A physical switch can be used to select between multiple payloads. The RGB LED provides instantaneous, covert feedback on payload status.

Common use cases:

• Root CLI Access
• Keystroke Injection
• Nework Infiltration
• Data Exfiltration

To protect youself from Bash Bunny you should:

• Don’t make users administrator without requesting permission, and only for a limited time
• Disable USB for anything else than charging
• Don’t forget to enable password change and automatic screen lock

O.MG Cable

The O.MG cable is a unique hacking device and one of the best devices for a hacker to add to his/her collections. It’s a USB cable that is designed to allow your Red Team to emulate attack scenarios of sophisticated adversaries.

According to Hak5, the O.MG cable has these features:

• WebUI over WiFi
• Keystroke Injection
• Global Keymaps
• 8 to 200 slots for payloads
• Built-in IDE
• Mobile Payloads
• Hardware Keylogger
• Covert Exfil
• Air Gap Host Comms
• Networked C2
• Self-Destruct
• Geo-Fencing
• WiFi Triggers

Flipper Zero

Flipper Zero is an open-source, portable hacking tool for pentesters and geeks. It likes hacking digital stuff, such as radio protocols, access control systems, hardware, and more. 

Flipper Zero can interact with digital systems in real life and develop as you use it. It was inspired by the pwnagotchi project but provides all the hardware tools you need for exploration and development on the go, in a convenient and practical package.

Flipper was designed to be used in everyday situations, in addition to being convenient and economical to make, it has a robust case, convenient buttons, and a shape that won't leave you with dirty PCBs or scratchy pins.

Using the directional pad, you can control Flipper Zero without any additional devices, such as computers or smartphones. Common scripts and functions are available from the menu.

USB Killer

A USB Killer is an electronics device that appears and seems like a USB Flash Drive but delivers a continuously high voltage through a USB port to wreck any device. It's available for around $3 in online stores.

Initially, USB Killer was developed for legal purposes like identifying hardware vulnerabilities and testing surge protection capabilities. Penetration testers, enforcement personnel, and hardware manufacturers are currently using it. 

However, people are also using it for illicit purposes.

It has been advertised as a testing device that's designed to check the boundaries of electrical surge protection circuitry. It should even be used as an anti-forensics tool.

The USB Killer has capacitors, resistors, diodes, transistors, oscillators, and other components inside. Once you insert your USB drive into the USB port, the oscillator circuit charges it using 5 V from the port. 

The transformer then outputs 200-220 V from this 5 V. A capacitor is charged by this high voltage, which is then sent to the info pins on the USB. By discharging the capacitor, the high voltage damages the motherboard and therefore the computer.

Here are some ways to stop USB Killer:

• Be careful to not insert unknown USBs into your system.
• Always use a reputable brand for USB drives.
• Use a Hyperdrive Type-C USB hub and plug your USB flash drive into it.
• With cryptographic authentication and host system authentication, USB Type C prevents unauthorized and inappropriate power usage. This makes it harder for USB killers to succeed.
• Educate people about USB killers.

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