Maximizing Penetration Testing Success with Effective Reconnaissance
Techniques using ChatGPT
Abstract
ChatGPT is a generative pretrained transformer language model created
using artificial intelligence implemented as chatbot which can provide
very detailed responses to a wide variety of questions. As a very
contemporary phenomenon, this tool has a wide variety of potential use
cases that have yet to be explored. With the significant extent of
information on a broad assortment of potential topics, ChatGPT could add
value to many information security uses cases both from an efficiency
perspective as well as to offer another source of security information
that could be used to assist with securing Internet accessible assets of
organizations. One information security practice that could benefit from
ChatGPT is the reconnaissance phase of penetration testing. This
research uses a case study methodology to explore and investigate the
uses of ChatGPT in obtaining valuable reconnaissance data. ChatGPT is
able to provide many types of intel regarding targeted properties which
includes Internet Protocol (IP) address ranges, domain names, network
topology, vendor technologies, SSL/TLS ciphers, ports & services, and
operating systems used by the target. The reconnaissance information can
then be used during the planning phase of a penetration test to
determine the tactics, tools, and techniques to guide the later phases
of the penetration test in order to discover potential risks such as
unpatched software components and security misconfiguration related
issues. The study provides insights into how artificial intelligence
language models can be used in cybersecurity and contributes to the
advancement of penetration testing techniques.