Abstract
Kon-Boot is an application which can be used for a hacking purpose, although it has other uses as well. It allows the user to access operating systems without knowing the password, and it allows for silent bypassing of the authentication process. The whole time it continues to ensure that the existing password is not disturbed or interfered with. This has significant applicability for technicians who often repair the computers of clients, but do not wish to inefficiently waste time trying to contact the customer in order to gain access to the password, in addition to providing a way for hackers to gain access to systems. This was an enjoyable project and one that definitely captured my attention. The most interesting part was definitely in downloading and testing the software, although it did use up more time expected. I had not thought that it would be so easy to get around operating system authentication. Writing the presentation to report on the project was easier and took less time than I thought it would, as there was a lot to report on with regard to the software and my investigation.
Kon-Boot is an application which can be used for a hacking purpose, although it has other uses as well. It allows the user to access operating systems without knowing the password, and it allows for silent bypassing of the authentication process. The whole time it continues to ensure that the existing password is not disturbed or interfered with. This has significant applicability for technicians who often repair the computers of clients, but do not wish to inefficiently waste time trying to contact the customer in order to gain access to the password, in addition to providing a way for hackers to gain access to systems. This was an enjoyable project and one that definitely captured my attention. The most interesting part was definitely in downloading and testing the software, although it did use up more time expected. I had not thought that it would be so easy to get around operating system authentication. Writing the presentation to report on the project was easier and took less time than I thought it would, as there was a lot to report on with regard to the software and my investigation.
Steps and Procedures
The purpose of this project was to investigate a program or application that can be used for hacking or hacking protection, and to report on details and how it was useful in a presentation. Kon-Boot was a program that fulfilled that goal. In order to complete this tasks I went through many steps and procedures, and also faced challenges and lessons learned. There were many steps involved in thoroughly investigating this software tool, and the challenges were the significant time that this required as well as how the software itself raised some ethical considerations. Overall it is an excellent tool with many legitimate uses, and one that I plan to continue to use in the future for my own legitimate purposes.
The steps and procedures to complete this project included choosing the application, researching the details of the application, downloading and using the application and then reporting on it as a PowerPoint presentation.
Choosing the application involved doing several searches and reading through reviews of various software which had hacking capability. Once Kon-Boot was chosen, the website was a good source of information about the various details, particularly installation and the difference between free and paid versions (Raymond Tech Resources, 2013).
Downloading the software and then installing and setting it up was straightforward, although it did use up some time. Once it was downloaded the various claims that were made were tested as well as the basic functionality of the application.
Reporting on this investigation required organizing some of my thoughts, and then formatting it into a presentation. I had others read through my presentation to check for errors and editing, and this completed the project.
Challenges faced and lesson learned
Two main challenges were faced in this project, one being the amount of time that is required to fully explore a software application and the second being some concerns about the unethical applications of the software.
The time that it takes to investigate software was something that I had not expected. Initially I set aside two hours to find a program and learn more about it. After that time had passed I had barely chosen and downloaded the program. Once I started testing the features in the free version, I realized that many hours had passed. Part of the time issue was the time that it takes to install the program and get it up and running, but mostly it was the curiosity about using the program itself.
It was only when I was about to share the news of the application that I began to have some other thoughts with regard to the nature of the project. The purpose was to explore an application that supporting a hacking capability, and realizing that Kon-Boot existed made me realize some of the uses that this software had which could be used against me and my own computer security. Certainly it was not an application that I would want marketed to my room-mates, burglars and thieves or pawn shop employees.
Those that I had shared the concept with immediately questioned the morality of the application, including questioning the name (whether the “Kon” indicated that it had illegal or underground aspects) and whether it was intended for computer repair technicians or for sleuthing and snooping where one should not. Other concerns were the fact that if it were installed and used remoted it could represent a significant security breach. On the other hand, this gave the software yet another potential role in testing of security, particularly for systems that are believed to be secure. Once I explained this last feature, people were genuinely interested in how the application could be used for “good”.
Writing the report as a presentation was surprisingly the easiest part of the project. Because I had spent quite some time with the application, and was interested in telling others about it, this part was done fairly quickly. I enjoyed sharing it with people so that they could double check my grammar and spelling. I was surprised by how people had bigger reactions to the software than I might have expected them to.
Conclusion
This was an interesting project that really captured my attention. The most fun was in downloading and testing the software, although it did use up a lot more time than I expected it to. The functionality of the software really surprised me, as I had not thought that it would be so easy to get around operating system authentication.
- Raymond Tech Resources. (2013). “Login To Windows Administrator And Linux Root Account Without Knowing Or Changing Current Password”. Retrieved from: https://www.raymond.cc/blog/login-to-windows-administrator-and-linux-root-account-without-knowing-or-changing-current-password/
