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Ethical Hacker (Penetration Tester)

Legally hacks into systems to find vulnerabilities before malicious hackers do.

Did you know?

In 2025 Apple doubled its top bug bounty to $2 million, and bonuses can push a payout past $5 million for the most serious attacks on its devices.

How subjects help

Computer Science: Probe websites and networks for weak spots, then show the owners how to fix them.
Mathematics: Test whether passwords and secret codes are strong enough to resist guessing.
Logic: Think like an attacker and trace how one small flaw could open up a whole system.

A famous name

Dan Kaminsky: Directed penetration testing at IOActive and in 2008 found a major internet (DNS) flaw and got it fixed.

Try it yourself: Build a strong password from three random words

Sort the made-up passwords from weakest to strongest.
Spot the traps: common passwords, personal details like pet names or birthdays, and swapping letters for numbers (criminals expect that trick).
Practise making an example: pick three words at random, like looking round a room with your eyes shut, and join them together, such as "applenemobiro".
Say your practice password out loud. Is it long, easy to remember and impossible to guess from facts about you? Don't use it for a real account, and never share a real password.

Cybersecurity analysts test how easily passwords can be guessed and teach people simple rules, like three random words, that make accounts much harder to break into.

Adapted from National Cyber Security Centre: Three random words.

Also try: Draw your room to scale.

Known for it in

USA, Israel, UK, India, Estonia