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On a typical Unix-like system, users work as unprivileged users, with access to their own files, but without the ability to tamper with the system or other users’ files. But once again, is it really wise to check your mail as root on a machine you will use for security auditing? To download Kali Linux, I went to the official download page and followed the first download link on that page.Īnd indeed it will. Downloading Kali Linux- and checking the image integrity It is just a special distribution that makes the tasks it’s specifically designed for easier, while consequently making some other tasks more difficult. In other words, whatever’s your goal, you don’t have to use Kali. The difference is that Kali is pre-packaged with those tools and the default settings were chosen according to the intended use cases of that distribution, rather than, say, to fit the needs of the typical desktop user. So Kali Linux does not offer something unique in the sense that most of the tools it provides could be installed on any Linux distribution. Simply put, it’s a Linux distribution packed with security-related tools and targeted toward network and computer security experts.Ī Linux distribution is nothing more than a bundle containing the Linux kernel, a set of core utilities and applications and some default settings. To quote the official web page title, Kali Linux is a “Penetration Testing and Ethical Hacking Linux Distribution”.
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It’s a Debian-based rewrite of their previous Knoppix-based digital forensics and penetration testing distribution BackTrack. Kali Linux is developed by the security firm Offensive Security.
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