Ethical Hacker vs. Penetration Tester: Key Differences, Skills and Career Paths

Are you someone who is looking up the professions that come under the cybersecurity field? Does every designation sound the same to you? Are you wondering what the difference is between an ethical hacker and a penetration tester? This Ethical Hacker vs. Penetration Tester blog will clear all your doubts.

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Ethical Hacker vs. Penetration Tester: Introduction

Have you applied for an ethical hacker position, but the hiring manager keeps describing the role as “penetration tester”? This is indeed a confusing scenario. Both these terms are often used interchangeably. But that is not entirely right. Even though there is some overlap between the roles and skills needed for these jobs, they are not exactly the same. In this blog, we will try to give you clarity on key differences between an ethical hacker and a penetration tester when it comes to skills needed, their key responsibilities, and their career path. Let us learn more about this ethical hacker vs. penetration tester confusion.

What Is an Ethical Hacker?

An ethical hacker is a professional who is hired to find vulnerabilities in a system before malicious hackers do. The table below will give you a good idea about all aspects of this job.

What Is a Penetration Tester?

A penetration tester is a professional who simulates real-world cyberattacks to test system defences.

Ethical Hacker vs. Penetration Tester: Head-to-Head Comparison

The differences between the roles of ethical hacker vs. penetration tester are clearly stated in the table below.

Career Paths and Opportunities

As we discussed above, the career paths of an ethical hacker and penetration tester are very different. An ethical hacker will go into the following roles as their career progresses.

• Security analyst
• Consultant
• Auditor

In the meantime, a penetration tester’s career goes into the following positions:

• Red team specialist
• Vulnerability assessor
• Offensive Security Engineer

Both jobs are in high demand and have somewhat similar career progression at a global level. But when it comes to salary, a penetration tester has a more advantageous position due to their highly specialized skills.

Common Misconceptions

There are many misconceptions when it comes to titles like ‘ethical hacker’. We debunk them in this section.

• Ethical hackers are not illegal hackers. They are highly trained professionals who work with appropriate permissions.
• A penetration tester is not always an ethical hacker. Their training is more specialised. Their primary focus is on offensive training.
• Ethical hackers and penetration testers are not the same. It is true that their skills and roles overlap, but the skills and roles of an ethical hacker are more generalised and broader, whereas those of a penetration tester are narrower and more specialised.

Skills & Tools Comparison

This section will clear any doubt you have about the skills one should possess and tools one might need training for when they plan to get into position.

Which Role Should You Choose?

Are you still confused about which role to choose? It is quite simple.

• If you want a broad role covering audits, compliance, and vulnerability assessments, then choose the role of the ethical hacker.
• If you are passionate about offensive security, exploit development, and red teaming, then choose the role of the penetration tester.

Tip for Beginners

The best advice we can give beginners is the following:

• Start with CompTIA Security+ for fundamentals.
• Move to CEH if you want ethical hacking.
• Aim for OSCP if penetration testing excites you.

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Conclusion

Almost all the questions that come under “Ethical Hacker vs. Penetration Tester” have been discussed in this blog. The roles are not the same even if there are overlaps in their job profiles and the job names are sometimes used interchangeably. The role of professionals under both these roles is to protect the organization, but the area of focus for each of them is very different. Ethical hackers are generalists, whereas penetration testers are offensive specialists. Don’t wait for a degree to decide your future. Learn the skills and get certified with Entri to start building a very rewarding career.