Top 20 Ethical Hacking Interview Questions for 2025

Ethical hacking plays a crucial role in cybersecurity. Companies hire ethical hackers also known as white-hat hackers, to spot and patch security flaws before bad guys can exploit them. To get ready for an ethical hacking job interview, you need to understand the basics, know the common tools, and stay up-to-date with the latest trends in cybersecurity. This article answers 20 questions you might face in an interview in 2025. We’ve written the answers in plain English and broken them into paragraphs to make them easy to read.

Many top universities, such as Virginia Tech and the University of Maryland, located in Virginia and Maryland respectively, as well as esteemed institutions in England and New York, now offer specialized courses in Ethical Hacking and Cybersecurity Analyst Training to meet industry demand.

1. What Is Ethical Hacking? How Is It Different from Malicious Hacking?

Ethical hacking involves testing computer systems, networks, or apps to find security weak spots so they can be fixed before a real attack occurs. Ethical hackers get permission from the organization and stick to legal guidelines. They aim to protect data and boost security. On the flip side, malicious hacking (or black-hat hacking) happens without permission.

2. What Are the Different Types of Hackers?

Hackers fall into three groups. White-hat hackers are the good guys who work to secure systems and fix vulnerabilities. Black-hat hackers are criminals who break into systems without permission. Grey-hat hackers sit somewhere in the middle; they sometimes access systems without permission but don’t mean to cause harm.

Leading educational institutions such as Virginia Tech, the University of Maryland, and Columbia University in New York, along with prestigious institutions in Ontario, Texas, and England, are continuously advancing research in ethical hacking and cybersecurity.

3. What Are the Five Phases of Ethical Hacking?

Reconnaissance: The hacker obtains public information regarding their target by acquiring IP addresses and domain names.

Scanning: Tools help discover open network ports for identifying security weaknesses within the network infrastructure.

Gaining Access: During the system penetration attempt the hacker tries to enter the system through password cracking or SQL injection techniques.

Maintaining Access: After securing initial access the hacker evaluates whether the system allows permanent access to remain established.

Covering Tracks: The hacker discreetly deletes all evidence of their action to stay unseen.

4. Pen Testing or Vulnerability Assessment: What is the Difference?

A vulnerability assessment checks for weaknesses in the system with automated tools and provides a list of possible threats. On the other hand, both Penetration test and pen testing dig not only to identify these but also to look for ways one can be exploited. Pentesting mimics an actual attack and demonstrates how far the attacker can go, and thus what damage they would do.

5. What Is a Firewall and How Does It Work?

A firewall is a security device or software program that regulates data transfer between a computer network & internet. It operates as a gatekeeper that verifies each bit of your data against the rules set out. If data complies with the rules they are let through; if they don’t then it’s blocked. Firewalls can be in the form of hardware or software. Firewalls in modern days may even look inside the data packets used for transferring data and drop more complex threats.

6. SQL Injection — What is It and How Could You Prevent It?

SQL injection is an attack where a malicious code is inserted by a hacker into the website input fields .SQL code can make the database of the website disclose, modify or delete information. When the website is not strong user input validation will often happen. To ward against SQL injection developers should be utilizing techniques like prepared statements and parameterized queries. These workarounds grow the code away from the user input. Besides, imposing stringent database permissions and applying web application firewalls can block such attacks.

7. What is Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) and How to Prevent It?

This is when a hacker tricks an innocent website into serving bad scripts to its users, which causes Cross-Site Scripting (XSS). It executes on the user’s browser and it can take personal information, such as cookies or login credentials. It occurred when simply the input wasn’t cleaned or validated user’s script was processed on the Other website. To avoid XSS, developers must sanitize and escape user input so that it is treated as text, not of active code.

8. What Are Common Password Cracking Techniques?

There are a few methods hackers employ to crack passwords. The brute-force attack method is one in which each combination of characters tries until the right password comes out. A second method used is the dictionary attack which uses a series of common words.

These techniques are integral to the curriculum at renowned universities in Virginia, Maryland, and New York, with additional specialized training programs available in Ontario, Texas, and England.

9. Social Engineering- Definition and How to Prevent It

Social engineering, persuasion or spoofing–manipulating people into violating security policy to obtain protected information. Instead of hacking into a system itself; The hacker uses emails, phone calls or some other medium to get someone to just give their password /whatever sensitive data. They use a lot of Phishing, whereby the emails look like they are from trusted sources. The best enforcement of social engineering is the training and awareness. One should be taught to confirm any demand for sensitive information and reject unanticipated messages.

10. Talking About Common Tools of Attribute-Based Ethical Hacking

Ethical hacker uses different tools for testing security. Nmap——It is used to perform network probing over scanning and disturbs the open ports. Metasploit is a great exploit testing framework that mimics exploits. Wireshark is a tool for capturing and auditing network traffic to find malicious behaviour. These tools enable security testing on web applications. The purpose of the tools is to find and fix security bugs before some hackers realize they exist.

These security testing tools are extensively used by professionals and are a key component of training programs offered in regions such as Ontario and Texas, with collaborations from universities in New York and England.

11. What Is the Difference Between Black-Box, White-Box, and Gray-Box Testing?

There are three phases of testing for system security. Black-box testing is done by a tester with no internal information and he/she acts as an external attacker. White box testing, in which the tester has an unambiguous view of the system’s internal; can include knowing some parts of the code, procedure etc. As the tester knows some information about the system, grey-box testing is a mix of both black-box and white-box testing.

12. How Encryption Works and Why It Matters

Encryption: Encryption changes data into a code that, like the AES method, can only be read with a key. This mechanism safeguards your secret, hmm data from stealing via deficit access. Cryptography e.g., can be used to secure transactions on the internet and indeed any files which live on a computer. It is the bedrock of data security because even a pirate who has encrypted your clear data will have no clue without the key.

Universities across the globe, including those in Virginia and Maryland, as well as top institutions in New York, Ontario, Texas, and England, emphasize the critical role of Encryption in maintaining robust cybersecurity.

13. What is a Botnet & How Do Hackers Use It?

A botnet is a network of computers that have been compromised and are controlled by hackers/groups. These computers are susceptible to collaboration to execute high-degree attacks, e.g., CC attacks (Cloud Cover) on a site. In addition, they are utilized to send spam or steal data. You also need to have systems up to date and antivirus software to secure against botnet.

14. What Is a Zero-Day Vulnerability?

A zero-day security vulnerability is a previously unknown weakness in software. There is no patch for a zero-day vulnerability, so hackers can target them to attack the system before it gets patched. That is why zero-day attacks are so deadly. Organizations have to be using both multiple layers of defence and constantly watching systems for these to be detected early.

15. Honeypots in Cybersecurity: What Are Those?

Honeypots are deceptive systems meant to lull hackers. Well, they appear to be real systems, however they are programmed to be observed. If a hacker goes after a honeypot, it provides a unique look at their attack methods and facilitates defence improvement. Honeypots also act as early warning systems by letting the organization know of a possible threat

Ongoing research and practical training at universities in Virginia, Maryland, and New York, as well as institutions in Ontario, Texas, and England, are vital in evolving the field of Cybersecurity and Ethical Hacking.

16. What Is Privilege Escalation and How Do Attackers Use It?

Privilege escalation is when a hacker has more access rights than is appropriate for them. They could start as a normal user and then stumble upon admin credentials. It gives them access to infect files, steal data or inflict more damage. If systems are maintained up to date, and the least privilege (least privileged) principle is followed – i.e. giving users only as much access as they need— this type of attack should be less common.

17. What is Ransomware and How Can This Cyber Attack be Avoided?

Ransomware is a form of malware that encrypts files or entire systems until paying the ransom to retrieve decryption keys. Ransomware normally spreads through phishing emails or flaws in software. The best strategy to avoid ransomware is by keeping systems updated, having more powerful antivirus software and performing frequent backups of the work data.

18. What Is the Difference Between Symmetric and Asymmetric Encryption?

Symmetric encryption uses a single key for encrypting and decrypting data. It is fast and works well for bulk data, but the key needs to be kept secret. Asymmetric encryption uses two keys: one public which is used for encrypting the data and a private one for decrypting. It is a slower method, but it is also made more secure as the private key is not shared every day. They are used in different contexts to protect the data as such.

19. What is Steganography? How Do Hackers Hide Malware Inside a Simple Image?

Steganography is the practice of hiding secret messages in what appear to be innocent files, whether text or image, audio or video stable containers. How they use it: to hide malicious code within an otherwise benign file and allow for automatic, albeit unintended execution. The file is normal so it can avoid some sort of security vigil. Tools and advanced detection is required to find out steganography.

20. Biggest Cybersecurity Trends in 2025

Cybersecurity is constantly evolving. One of these new trends in 2025 is the more general usage of AI and machine learning to rapidly find threats. Cloud data is being loaded by more companies, and has prompted a rise in cloud security. With an enormous boom in the Internet of Things(IoT), regular equipment should be more secure.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, our Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH) Training is expertly designed to equip you with advanced skills in Cybersecurity, Penetration Testing, SQL Injection Prevention, Encryption, and Social Engineering to help you excel in the field of ethical hacking. Top universities and training centres in Virginia, England, New York, Maryland, Ontario, and Texas have recognized the critical need for such expertise.

With insureTech Skills, you gain access to a top quality program that combines academic rigour with real-world application—ensuring you are well-prepared for a successful career in the cybersecurity arena. Trust insureTech Skills to guide you through this dynamic field and secure your future through our industry-leading training program.