Exploitation Fundamentals

Exploitation is the phase where you actively leverage vulnerabilities to gain unauthorised access to a target system. In ethical hacking, exploitation proves that a vulnerability is real and demonstrates its potential impact to the organisation.

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The Purpose of Exploitation

Exploitation in penetration testing serves to:

• Prove a vulnerability is exploitable, not just theoretical
• Demonstrate the real-world impact (data access, system control)
• Measure the depth of compromise possible
• Validate or invalidate security controls

Tip: Exploitation should be controlled and measured. The goal is to prove impact, not to cause damage. Always operate within the agreed scope and rules of engagement.

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Key Concepts

Payloads

A payload is the code that runs on the target after a vulnerability is exploited: