With physical hardware, you will need PCs to hold your target machines (Victim machine) and your Exploitation OS/tool (Attacker machine). However, both have their advantages and disadvantages.

The main difference between the two scenarios is cost.

When setting up a virtual lab, you can decide to use Physical hardware or Virtualization. Let’s look at the differences between the two. The puzzle that comes with setting up a virtual lab is whether to use Physical devices, virtualization technology, or a mix of both. With a virtual lab, you are assured that you are working within a confined environment, and only the target system will be impacted. If these viruses happen to leak to an external system or even your computer, they will have a severe impact, and in some cases, the damage might be irreversible. For example, if you are handling Malware Analysis, you will deal with real-world viruses. Some attacks carried out while practicing ethical hacking can seriously impact the network and the system itself. One more advantage of a virtual lab is that it isolates you from real-world systems and even your host machine. Therefore, a virtual lab acts as a haven to practice your skills without compromising other people’s digital systems.ĪLSO READ: How to restrict root user to access or modify a file and directory in Linux For example, individuals who violate the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) are liable to a five-or ten-year jail term with fines included. It is considered illegal, and depending on a country’s laws you can even be jailed. As a rule, you can’t just go out there and start hacking web systems and software without administrative permission from the owner. It gives users a legal platform to test their software. However, it provides much more than just convenience. Why Setup a Virtual Penetration Testing Lab?Ī virtual penetration testing lab creates a safe and convenient environment for ethical hackers to sharpen their skills and test the various security tools available in the cybersecurity field.

Setting up a virtual penetration testing lab and look at the differences between virtualization and cloud technology. In this post, we will handle precisely that. If you want to dive into Ethical Hacking, Penetration Testing, or become a bug bounty hunter, you will need a Virtual Penetration Testing Lab.

How to use virtualbox for virus testing