John the Ripper vs. Kali Linux

It is best suited in those environments where complexity is not the key. We've used it fairly extensively in our UNIX to find weak UNIX passwords and in Windows environments too. It's very easy to get hold of as it is essentially Open Source, although a paid version is now available and we are thinking of looking at this proposition in-depth to see if it is viable. We found it easy to install and deploy across our systems. Patching was fairly regular, so we always had the latest version. It holds its own against DES and Blowfish encryption algorithms among many others.

Incentivized

Kali is well suited for the following:

• Analyzing SSL certs to verify
  they are installed correctly
• Analyzing SSL configuration on
  servers to confirm correct ciphers are enabled
• Scanning our web servers for
  vulnerabilities as part of our regular security testing
• Scanning wordpress sites to
  identify out of date plugins and other potential security issues.
• Running port scans on our servers
  to make sure only certain ports are open

It is not appropriate for users who aren't already familiar with cybersecurity. Kali is an advanced OS geared for cybersecurity applications.

Incentivized

• Easily finds plantect passwords.
• Simply detects passwords hashes.
• Has a fully bespoke cracker that can be modified to users requirements.
• Excellent for UNIX and Windows usage.

Incentivized

• Open source
• Suite of tools for PT
• NEtHunter

Incentivized

• It needs to be modified to be able to break SHA 256, 512 and the lastest hashes.
• Can be slow and wildly against the lastest hashes.
• Require admin access to set up account.
• Old and is being superseded by better applications.

Incentivized

• Usage wise, it is tough for use by beginners. Can be improved.
• With Kali Linux have noticed driver related issues especially with Nvidia graphics cards.
• Kali Linux can be improved for use as a day to day OS.

Incentivized

'John the Ripper' being open source was free to use, whereas the others had to be paid for. It was very simple to install and runs against many hundreds of hashes and crypts. It is always developing thanks to large communities on GitHub.

Incentivized

As Parrot security OS is relatively new to the game, Kali Linux has an edge as it is in the market since 2013. Kali Linux has an advantage that it is opensource and has good back end technical support by open source developers worldwide. Also Parrot security OS is based on cloud environments and Kali Linux OS is made to run in house.

Incentivized

• Helped us achieve initial Password Auditor goals and targets.
• Simple and cheap to deploy, so have saved greatly compared to paid for products.

Incentivized

• Kali is a free OS which makes it very useful to install so many tools while not paying a premium

Incentivized