At 3.5 GB, the VM image is compact and easy to carry on a flash drive that's 8 GB or more.Įxtensively documented in Mike Bazzell's book, " Open Source Intelligence Techniques," Buscador encourages good research habits and empowers researchers to find more clues in their investigations.
This allows the flexibility of using it anywhere you have access to a computer, regardless of whether or not you have your personal device with you.
Because avoiding detecting is a goal of both investigators and hackers share, Buscador comes with Tor preinstalled and boasts other helpful privacy tools.īuscador VM is also capable of being booted from a USB thumb drive on any available computer, as well as being loaded onto the hard disk and booted directly. Based on Ubuntu rather than Debian, Buscador does not include the formidable set of cyber weaponry that Kali boasts, instead hand-picking a collection of useful OSINT, privacy, and capture tools into one stealthy package. Hackers can think of the Buscador OSINT virtual machine like an OSINT-focused version of Kali Linux. The OSINT Tools on his website, however, will not be returning because of DMCAs and cease-and-desists from some of the tools.Ī VM for Hackers, Researchers & Investigators Another focus of this VM was security, stealthiness, and the ability to easily save digital forensic evidence found during an investigation.Įditor's note: Mike Bazzel's Buscador OS that's featured in this article was temporarily taken down from his website due to increased DDoS-style attacks, but it's back up and running as normal. Don't Miss: Use Maltego to Fingerprint a Network Using Only a Domain NameĪfter seeing glaring holes in the operational security of the way many police departments conduct OSINT research, experts Mike Bazzell and David Westcott set out to create a specialized VM specifically to bring together the most effective OSINT tools and customized scripts used by themselves and other investigators.There are a lot of great tools for this out there, but installing and configuring them all can be a pain. Instead, finding the most efficient path to the right data is one of the core challenges an investigator will face This means using tools much more sophisticated than a Google search to hunt down clues relating to a target. With all the data available in the digital world, the problem for a researcher is rarely whether or not the information exists The amount of data that exists is overwhelming and difficult to sort through, but the right data almost always there. OSINT research tools allow access to the incredible amount of data our society produces, often used as forensic clues to solve a crime or as a method of reconnaissance to allow a hacker to plan their attack. Most people have similar reactions to the amount and kind of information that can be pulled from open sources. When I showed employees at Uber research tools like TheHarvester and Maltego, the reaction ranged from wide-eyed amazement to suspicious questions about the legality of the programs being used. This program can easily be set up in VirtualBox, and once that's done, we'll walk you through some of the most useful tools included in it.
Buscador is a virtual machine packed full of useful OSINT tools and streamlined for online research. Kali Linux is developed by Offensive Security and previously by BackTrack.For anyone using open source information to conduct an investigation, a balance between powerful tools and privacy controls are a must. Kali Linux is the most widely known Linux distro for ethical hacking and penetration testing. These distros provide multiple tools that are needed for assessing networking security and other similar tasks.
Here’s a list of various Linux distributions focusing on security. But today we are going to have a look at a list of some of the best Linux distros to learn hacking and penetration testing.īefore we see the best Linux distros for hackers, I would recommend you to check out the online hacking courses at our shop. In a previous article, we explored some weird Ubuntu distributions. Some are designed for specific tasks in mind and others suit different interfaces. There are countless Linux distros for various purposes. Whether you want to pursue a career in information security, are already working as a security professional, or are just interested in the field, a decent Linux distro that suits your purposes is a must. Looking for the best Linux distro to learn hacking?