Web Application Penetration Testing from Udemy

The Web App Penetration Testing course is an online and self-paced technical training course that provides all the basic skills necessary to carry out a thorough and professional penetration test against website applications.

This technical training course was designed for those having no experience in testing the security of a website application, but wanting to learn how to start and properly execute the website application penetration testing so that they can use it for their organization to effectively protect their assets against cyber attacks or for individuals who would like to kick-off their career in information security.

This technical training course will help students move beyond the push-button scanning to professional, thorough, and high-value web application penetration testing. This will also enable students to assess the website application's security posture and convincingly demonstrate the business impact should attackers exploit the discovered security vulnerability.

This technical training course will be updated from time to time based on the tactics, techniques and procedures of each security vulnerability. So purchasing this course gets you a lifetime access to all updates.

Note that this technical training course is meant for education purpose only. Any actions and/or activities related to the material contained within this course is solely your responsibility. The instructor will not be held responsible in the event any criminal charges be brought against any individuals misusing the information used in this course to break the law.

What's inside

Learning objectives

Learn the proper penetration testing process for website application
Learn the difference between active and passive reconnaissance and how to leverage sites and tools to build a technical understanding of the target’s assets.
Learn how to properly identify vulnerabilities

Learn how to exploit vulnerabilities manually (via tryhackme)
Learn the basic components to write a professional penetration testing report for web application

Learn the proper penetration testing process for website application
Learn the difference between active and passive reconnaissance and how to leverage sites and tools to build a technical understanding of the target’s assets.
Learn how to properly identify vulnerabilities
Learn how to exploit vulnerabilities manually (via tryhackme)
Learn the basic components to write a professional penetration testing report for web application

Syllabus

Introduction

Whoami and Course Introduction

Lab Setup and Discord Server

Introduction to Web App Penetration Testing

Traffic lights

Read about what's good

what should give you pause

and possible dealbreakers

Provides a comprehensive introduction to web application penetration testing, making it suitable for individuals with little to no prior experience in the field

Covers both active and passive reconnaissance techniques, which are essential for building a strong understanding of a target's assets before launching an attack

Includes hands-on exploitation of vulnerabilities via TryHackMe, offering practical experience in a safe and controlled environment

Explores the use of open-source scanners like WPScan, Joomscan, and Droopescan, which are valuable tools for automating vulnerability detection

Requires learners to use BurpSuite, which may require a license or subscription to access its full functionality, potentially posing a barrier for some students

Focuses on identifying and exploiting common web application vulnerabilities, such as SQL injection, cross-site scripting, and remote file inclusion, which are still relevant today

Reviews summary

Practical web app penetration testing fundamentals

According to learners, this course provides a positive introduction to the field of web application penetration testing. Students particularly praise the hands-on approach and the inclusion of practical labs, often integrating with platforms like TryHackMe, which effectively reinforces the lecture material. The course is noted for its coverage of essential tools like Burp Suite and various open-source scanners, demonstrating their use in real-world scenarios. While designed for beginners, some reviewers suggest that having a basic technical background is helpful. The inclusion of guidance on writing professional reports is seen as a valuable addition for those pursuing a career.

Mostly accessible, some prior knowledge helps.

"As a complete beginner, I found the initial concepts easy to grasp, but some later sections required extra research."

"While the course states no prerequisites, having some familiarity with Linux and web basics is beneficial for speed."

"It's a good starting point for beginners, but be prepared to pause and rewatch or look up supplementary info."

"I had some prior IT knowledge, which I think made the pace comfortable; true beginners might find it challenging."

Addresses key vulnerability types and process.

"The syllabus covers a wide range of common web vulnerabilities, giving a solid overview."

"I liked how the course followed a logical penetration testing process from reconnaissance to reporting."

"It touches upon many important attack vectors you'll encounter in web app pentesting."

"The way it breaks down the different phases of testing is very structured and easy to follow."

Teaches how to structure professional reports.

"The section on writing the penetration testing report is incredibly useful, especially for those aiming for a career."

"I appreciated the focus on reporting severity levels and framing findings for a business audience."

"Knowing how to write a proper report is crucial, and this course covers it well."

"The reporting part is a strong positive for making the skills learned applicable professionally."

Covers essential tools with clear demonstrations.

"The sections demonstrating tools like Burp Suite and various scanners were very informative and easy to follow."

"I now feel much more comfortable using Burp Suite after seeing the detailed walkthroughs in the course."

"Covering relevant open-source tools adds significant value, allowing me to practice without expensive software."

"Seeing how different tools are used in the demos provides a realistic view of a pentester's workflow."

Hands-on exercises reinforce key concepts.

"The hands-on labs using TryHackMe were excellent and truly helped solidify the concepts presented in the videos."

"I learned the most by doing the exercises; seeing the tools and techniques in action made a huge difference."

"The practical demonstrations and labs are definitely the strongest part of this course for applying what you learn."

"Doing the labs made the often complex topics much easier to understand and remember, great practical experience."

Activities

Be better prepared before your course. Deepen your understanding during and after it. Supplement your coursework and achieve mastery of the topics covered in Web Application Penetration Testing with these activities:

Review Networking Fundamentals

Show steps

Reinforce your understanding of networking fundamentals to better grasp web application communication and potential vulnerabilities.

Browse courses on TCP/IP

Show steps

Review the OSI model and its layers.
Study common networking protocols like TCP, UDP, and HTTP.
Practice basic network troubleshooting commands.

Read 'OWASP Testing Guide'

Show steps

Familiarize yourself with the industry-standard testing methodologies.

View CISO Survey and Report 2013 on Amazon

Show steps

Download the OWASP Testing Guide.
Read through the guide, paying attention to the different testing phases and techniques.
Use the guide as a reference during your penetration testing projects.

Read 'The Web Application Hacker's Handbook'

Show steps

Gain a deeper understanding of web application vulnerabilities and exploitation techniques.

View Ethical Hacking and Web Hacking Handbook and... on Amazon

Show steps

Read the book cover to cover.
Take notes on key concepts and vulnerabilities.
Try out the exploitation techniques in a lab environment.

Four other activities

Expand to see all activities and additional details

Show all seven activities

Practice SQL Injection on PortSwigger Academy

Show steps

Sharpen your SQL injection skills through hands-on exercises.

Show steps

Create an account on PortSwigger Academy.
Work through the SQL injection labs, starting with basic examples.
Progress to more advanced SQL injection techniques.

Create a Penetration Testing Report Template

Show steps

Develop a professional report template to effectively communicate findings.

Show steps

Research common penetration testing report formats.
Design a template including sections for executive summary, findings, and recommendations.
Populate the template with sample data from a past project.

Write a blog post on a recent web app vulnerability

Show steps

Solidify your understanding of a specific vulnerability by researching and explaining it in detail.

Show steps

Research a recent web application vulnerability.
Write a blog post explaining the vulnerability, its impact, and how to prevent it.
Publish the blog post on a platform like Medium or your own website.

Build a vulnerable web application

Show steps

Gain a deeper understanding of web application vulnerabilities by building your own vulnerable application.

Show steps

Choose a web application framework (e.g., Flask, Django, Node.js).
Implement common vulnerabilities like SQL injection, XSS, and CSRF.
Document the vulnerabilities and how to exploit them.

Career center

Learners who complete Web Application Penetration Testing will develop knowledge and skills that may be useful to these careers:

Penetration Tester

A career as a Penetration Tester involves simulating cyberattacks to identify vulnerabilities in systems, networks, and applications. This Web Application Penetration Testing course is designed to equip someone with the skills to execute website application penetration testing, enabling them to protect assets against cyber attacks. This technical training course helps students move beyond push-button scanning to professional, thorough, and high-value web application penetration testing. It will also enable students to assess the website application's security posture and convincingly demonstrate the business impact should attackers exploit the discovered security vulnerability. The course's focus on reconnaissance, vulnerability identification, and manual exploitation, enhanced by hands-on labs, directly translates to the core tasks of a penetration tester.

See salaries and explore the career path for Penetration Tester

Vulnerability Assessor

If you become a Vulnerability Assessor, you will be responsible for identifying, analyzing, and reporting on security vulnerabilities in IT systems. The Web Application Penetration Testing course directly aligns with this role by teaching students how to identify vulnerabilities and exploit them. This course will help students move beyond the push-button scanning to professional, thorough, and high-value web application penetration testing. The course's comprehensive coverage of reconnaissance, scanning tools, and exploitation techniques enables vulnerability assessors to thoroughly evaluate an organization's security posture. The practical focus of the course, using tools like BurpSuite and techniques for manual exploitation, provides valuable hands-on experience.

See salaries and explore the career path for Vulnerability Assessor

Security Analyst

The role of a Security Analyst involves monitoring and analyzing security systems to identify and respond to security incidents. This Web Application Penetration Testing course helps strengthen the analyst's ability to understand potential threats and vulnerabilities. This technical training course was designed for those having no experience in testing the security of a website application, but wanting to learn how to start and properly execute the website application penetration testing so that they can use it for their organization to effectively protect their assets against cyber attacks or for individuals who would like to kick-off their career in information security. Understanding penetration testing methodologies, as taught in this course, provides a proactive approach to security, allowing analysts to anticipate and prevent attacks more effectively.

See salaries and explore the career path for Security Analyst

Security Engineer

A Security Engineer is responsible for implementing and maintaining security systems and tools. This Web Application Penetration Testing course helps security engineers gain practical experience with security tools and techniques. This technical training course will help students move beyond the push-button scanning to professional, thorough, and high-value web application penetration testing. Understanding how to perform penetration testing, identify vulnerabilities, and exploit them, as taught in the course, can help security engineers better secure the applications. The course's coverage of tools like BurpSuite, WPScan, and Nuclei, as well as techniques for manual exploitation, helps security engineers learn to implement robust security controls.

See salaries and explore the career path for Security Engineer

Application Security Engineer

An Application Security Engineer focuses on building secure applications by identifying and mitigating vulnerabilities during the development lifecycle. The Web Application Penetration Testing course helps application security engineers understand common web application vulnerabilities and how to prevent them. By learning about attack vectors, such as SQL injection, cross-site scripting, and insecure direct object references, the engineer is better prepared to design secure applications. The practical skills gained from this course, like manual exploitation, can be used to improve the security testing and code review processes.

See salaries and explore the career path for Application Security Engineer

Cybersecurity Specialist

A Cybersecurity Specialist works to protect computer systems, networks, and data from cyber threats. The Web Application Penetration Testing course is a good fit for this role. This technical training course was designed for those having no experience in testing the security of a website application, but wanting to learn how to start and properly execute the website application penetration testing so that they can use it for their organization to effectively protect their assets against cyber attacks or for individuals who would like to kick-off their career in information security. The course's focus on reconnaissance, vulnerability identification, and exploitation enables cybersecurity specialists to proactively assess and improve an organization's security posture.

See salaries and explore the career path for Cybersecurity Specialist

DevSecOps Engineer

A DevSecOps Engineer integrates security practices into the software development lifecycle. This Web Application Penetration Testing course helps a DevSecOps engineer by providing knowledge of web application vulnerabilities. By understanding how to perform penetration testing and identify vulnerabilities, as taught in the course, the engineer can integrate security testing into the development pipeline. The course's coverage of tools like WPScan, Joomscan, and BurpSuite, as well as techniques for manual exploitation, enable the engineer to automate security testing.

See salaries and explore the career path for DevSecOps Engineer

Information Security Consultant

As an Information Security Consultant, you will advise organizations on how to improve their security posture. This Web Application Penetration Testing course may be useful for consultants who need to assess website application security. This technical training course was designed for those having no experience in testing the security of a website application, but wanting to learn how to start and properly execute the website application penetration testing so that they can use it for their organization to effectively protect their assets against cyber attacks or for individuals who would like to kick-off their career in information security. The course covers key topics like reconnaissance, vulnerability scanning, and penetration testing report writing, enabling consultants to deliver comprehensive security assessments and recommendations.

See salaries and explore the career path for Information Security Consultant

Security Architect

The Security Architect is responsible for designing and implementing an organization's security infrastructure. This Web Application Penetration Testing course may be helpful for a security architect to understand the latest web application vulnerabilities and attack techniques. By gaining insights into how attackers exploit vulnerabilities, the architect can design more secure systems and networks. Concepts covered in the course, such as secure development practices and vulnerability mitigation, can be integrated into security architecture designs. A security architect is sometimes expected to hold an advanced degree.

See salaries and explore the career path for Security Architect

Cyber Threat Intelligence Analyst

A Cyber Threat Intelligence Analyst researches and analyzes cyber threats to provide actionable intelligence. This Web Application Penetration Testing course may be useful, because it provides a deeper understanding of attacker tactics, techniques, and procedures, especially related to web applications. This technical training course was designed for those having no experience in testing the security of a website application, but wanting to learn how to start and properly execute the website application penetration testing so that they can use it for their organization to effectively protect their assets against cyber attacks or for individuals who would like to kick-off their career in information security. The course also covers reconnaissance and asset discovery, which are essential for threat intelligence gathering.

See salaries and explore the career path for Cyber Threat Intelligence Analyst

Cloud Security Engineer

A Cloud Security Engineer is responsible for securing cloud-based infrastructure and applications. The Web Application Penetration Testing course may be useful for a cloud security engineer to understand web application vulnerabilities in cloud environments. This technical training course will help students move beyond the push-button scanning to professional, thorough, and high-value web application penetration testing. Understanding penetration testing methodologies and exploitation techniques, as taught in the course, allows engineers to better secure the applications they develop. The course also covers reconnaissance and asset discovery, which are relevant to cloud security planning.

See salaries and explore the career path for Cloud Security Engineer

Incident Responder

When a security incident occurs, the Incident Responder investigates and contains the threat. This Web Application Penetration Testing course may be useful for incident responders, in that it helps them understand attack vectors and how to analyze security breaches. By learning about common web application vulnerabilities and exploitation techniques, responders can more effectively identify the root cause of incidents. The course also covers post-attack phase activities, such as severity level assessment and penetration testing report writing, which are relevant to incident response.

See salaries and explore the career path for Incident Responder

Security Software Developer

A Security Software Developer develops software and tools that enhance security. The Web Application Penetration Testing course may be useful for security software developers who want to understand vulnerabilities and penetration testing methodologies. This technical training course will help students move beyond the push-button scanning to professional, thorough, and high-value web application penetration testing. Understanding attack vectors, penetration testing methodologies, and vulnerability exploitation, allows developers to create more effective security solutions. The course provides insights into the tools and techniques used by penetration testers, which can inform the design of security software.

See salaries and explore the career path for Security Software Developer

Network Security Engineer

The Network Security Engineer focuses on securing an organization's network infrastructure. This Web Application Penetration Testing course may be useful, since web applications are a frequent target of network-based attacks. By learning about web application vulnerabilities and penetration testing techniques, network security engineers can better protect networks from web-based threats. This technical training course was designed for those having no experience in testing the security of a website application, but wanting to learn how to start and properly execute the website application penetration testing so that they can use it for their organization to effectively protect their assets against cyber attacks or for individuals who would like to kick-off their career in information security. The course also covers reconnaissance and asset discovery, which are essential for network security planning.

See salaries and explore the career path for Network Security Engineer

Information Security Manager

An Information Security Manager oversees an organization's security program. This Web Application Penetration Testing course may be useful for managers who need to understand web application security risks. By learning about penetration testing methodologies and common vulnerabilities, the manager can better oversee security assessments. This technical training course will help students move beyond the push-button scanning to professional, thorough, and high-value web application penetration testing. The course's coverage of penetration testing report writing enables managers to communicate findings effectively.

See salaries and explore the career path for Information Security Manager

Web Application Penetration Testing

What's inside

Learning objectives

Syllabus

Traffic lights

Save this course

Reviews summary

Practical web app penetration testing fundamentals

Activities

Career center

Reading list

Share

Similar courses