Dictionary · Hacking Techniques and Methodologies
Reconnaissance
Assessment phases · Beginner
The information-gathering phase of an authorized assessment, when a tester learns what is publicly visible before touching a system in scope.
It is looking before acting. Public websites, job posts, and name records can reveal more than a team intended. Defenders reduce that exposure and notice scanning that follows.
Example: Before a permitted test, the team lists the company's public host names and confirms which ones are in the written scope.
Common misconception
- Reading public information is not the same as permission to probe or log in. Scope still has to be written down.