Beginner info for online / computer security

[Jay@hak5]

Hi Hak5 community

I'm hoping someone can help point me in the right direction here.

I'm a complete beginner in the "hacking", coding, online savy world & hoping to secure my computer and internet activity from prying eyes.

I've been a fan of hak5 for such a long time but you guys use such 'IT proffessional' terminology I'm really still none the wiser.

In laymans terms, for dummies:

Could someone take the time to point out some hak5 videos or tutorials to get me started in becoming more secure on my appliances / internet.

I've recently switched to Linux, from windows (which I absolutely adore). So made a good start (I think). What with encryption etc.

Hope to hear back

[psydT0ne]

Hey, ok well first things first...your question is as old as time my friend..."Where do I start?"

People will tell you to go and learn a programming language...read guides, read manuals, read books, etc etc etc.

But look, I reckon the best way to start is write down what your looking to achieve by becoming a "hacker".

So you wanted to become more secure on the internet?

Start with google (no, im not joking), something simple..like, "How to secure my internet connection"

Then start your research and start taking notes....ok they mention WPA2 here...what is that, how does it work, etc.

Build your knowledge base.

You may very find that you have a gift for a particular stream of technology, wifi, media, who knows!

Tinker with hardware...get a raspberry pi...cheap, small, low powered, literally shitloads of projects out there.

With that you may find an interest in putting together your own projects for it...which could lead to tinkering in programming to get the hardware to do what you need to do.

The idea is do a few things at first...and then if you're interested in a specific field and find that you're good at it..then use that as your segway into other areas.

I've been involved with computers for a few years now...i love playing with hardware and modding, i love wifi but my job takes me more into networking, routing, security aspect of things that i enjoy.

I don't call myself a hacker at all...and i dont think i need to..its just a label nowadays anyway.

The real key to it all is never be happy with knowing what you know...keep learning and sharing with others.

Also one thing i have learned is that if you dont know the answer to something...try and research and discover the answer by yourself...rather than asking a question without bothering to do any work yourself.

Well i hope that helps...I lurk here a lot but don't comment all that often..

Hopefully others here may offer similar advice.

Edited February 14, 2015 by psydT0ne

[digip]

I think Mnemonic pretty much hit the nail on the head, but just to add, vocabulary of technical terms, at most, give you a jump point for what to look for, since the words might be over your head, what they actually mean, may not be in a lot of instances once you read up on them. In most cases, we're all self taught for the most part and pick things up as we go.

I'd say take the things that you really don't understand though, any words you hear on the show or read in the forums, and as mentioned, google the terms. Then come back and when you find specifics that don't make sense, post a question on the specific topic if it hasn't already been asked, which again, a lot of the same things get asked over and over, but this is ok, because technology does not stand still, and things also evolve over time, so while an answer to why something in season 1 would be sufficient maybe 8 years ago, today, a better answer or new method may exist to do "xyz" or such. There may be something else you can learn in the process.

For the most part, other than new hardware and new OS's, the internet of things still works pretty much the same though, and breaking them down to the fundamentals, still applies at all levels. Just remember, search first if you can, google, and the forums, then link to things you're reading through that make no sense, and it helps us to help you understand it, or in the process, helps us to even learn something new, which you'll see, we're all noobs here, even the smart people with years of IT experience who work in the field, can sometimes overlook the simplest of things or forget to think outside the box to get a result in something they just didn't think of.

Be open minded, and don't take offense to everything people say. Lurking as in the previous post, is often one of the best ways to learn through observation, trial and error, and just jumping right in. I'd post link to things on the forums with similar questions and threads, but don't have them all handy. Most are sticked in each section, but also, just need to be looked for in general since "where to start" is a frequent question, you'll find lots of threads with responses and similar answers already.

Read, search, try, ask, rinse, repeat...

[Jay@hak5]

Thanks for both of your replies, I appreciate it.

Apologies for jumping the gun & starting a new thread, I'd a fair idea my question had been asked 100 times before. It's just knowing where to start out / impatience.

So much information / variables to take in. Lurking mode [on] off.

Thanks guys.