Network Basics for Hackers

To hack a system, you first have to understand the networks that connect it — and most aspiring hackers skip this crucial foundation. This course closes that gap. Based on the acclaimed book "Network Basics for Hackers" by OccupyTheWeb, it teaches you how networks and their protocols actually work, and, protocol by protocol, how each one is analysed, abused, and defended.

Working hands-on in Kali Linux with tools like Wireshark, tcpdump, iptables, aircrack-ng, and Burp Suite, you will move from core networking concepts and subnetting through packet analysis and firewalls, then into a deep protocol-by-protocol tour — Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, ARP, DNS, SMB, SMTP, SNMP, and HTTP — before advancing to the networks few courses ever cover: automobile (CAN bus), SCADA/ICS, and radio frequency (SDR). Every protocol is examined at the packet level, with its vulnerabilities and attacks shown alongside its defenses.

By the end of this course, you will be able to read and analyse network traffic like an attacker, recognise the weaknesses in each major protocol, carry out and defend against protocol-level attacks in your lab, and operate confidently across traditional, wireless, industrial, and radio networks — the networking foundation every serious hacker needs.

Disclaimer: This course is intended strictly for educational and authorised security testing purposes. All attacks are performed on networks you own or are explicitly authorised to test, within isolated lab environments. Unauthorised use of any technique taught in this course is illegal and strictly prohibited.