Hasn’t there been enough articles on “Google Hacking”? Hasn’t Wikipedia and websites like Exploit Database provided enough information to really keep things moving?
Yea, probably. So I won’t bother explaining it to you, but I’ll allow you to do your own research.
I’ve done my fair share of ethical hacking; well, more than the average person – we’ll go with that. (Yo, people of the dark web, I’m not picking a fight with you – please leave my website alone)
But why is this not something common sense? Why does it have to be labeled “hacking”? Sure, it can be cool and dangerous (simultaneously, even) if you’re doing things for the wrong reasons. But, if you’re doing it for the right reasons, and keeping your nose out of people’s open digital flies, you could get recruited by the big guys to do the right thing with them. Google’s algorithm identified my account as a potential interest in their recruitment efforts a while back (Credit to The Hustle, for capturing a screenshot of their own; I didn’t think of it at the time, as I was looking for Headless Chrome information for Puppeteer through Node.js).
Just don’t do bad, mm’kay?
Google hacking as it’s called, is actually quite useful for research purposes. Very helpful, when you’re looking for more detailed information for say, your thesis or dissertation, and you’re looking for reputable sources, and you’re not sure which websites to trust. Knowing your way around a computer and how unusual it is for someone to make a .pdf file, searching through google, – erhm – “Google Hacking”, you can search for .pdf files using the construct filetype:pdf within the google search bar of whatever you’re looking for. You can also use this for other file types, like .doc, .docx, .ppt, etc.
Changed. Your. Life.
Okay. Maybe not. But, it’s extremely helpful. Just try searching for training material on a website by also adding the site: construct to your search, and boom! You’re in business. Well, the searching/researching one, anyway.
Why can’t it just be called “advanced google searching techniques”? Well, because it’s difficult. And people don’t know much about it, and it’s on a computer, so clearly, you’re hacking. Google Hacking, that is. P.S., don’t tell any of your friends, because they’ll ask you to help them research lots of things. No matter how cool you think you are, you won’t be getting the things that they really think you can do. And even if you could, you shouldn’t, because that’s illegal.
Okay, so, I started this post by saying I wasn’t going to tell you about how to utilize those “google hacking” techniques, but it all begins with something. Use those techniques to find the information you’re looking for – and dig around to see what you can find. This is a useful technique when trying to find reputable sources.
You could even give your skills a try on AGoogleADay.com