Hacker roadmap
A curated, now-archived list of pen-testing tools, resources and references for learning ethical hacking.
- Stars
- 15.7k
- Forks
- 1.7k
- Licence
- MIT
- Language
- —
- Last update
- 3.1 years ago
- Type
- Curated list
This repository is archived and no longer maintained.
What it is
This is a collection of links and notes meant to help people learn penetration testing, the practice of testing a system's security by looking for weaknesses. It groups tools by category such as information gathering, password attacks, web hacking and post-exploitation, and adds glossary entries and background reading. The project has been terminated and archived, so some content may be outdated.
- Read the vocabulary section to learn terms like red team, blue team and reverse engineering
- Browse the tools-by-category sections to find candidate tools to research
- Follow the linked books and challenges to practice on purpose-built targets
- Use the basic steps of pen testing section as an outline for further study
Great for
- Beginners who want an overview of penetration testing concepts and vocabulary
- Developers who want to understand common web security risks
- Students building a reading list before practicing on legal challenge sites
- People looking for a starting index of security tools to research further
Not ideal for
- Anyone who needs current tool versions or maintained links, since the project is archived and may be outdated
- Experienced pen testers looking for up-to-date tooling, because the README itself warns content may be outdated
- People expecting an installable program, since this is a reference list rather than software
How to get it
- 1
Read it online
Clone the repository to read it locally
git clone https://github.com/sundowndev/hacker-roadmap - 2
Run it
- Open the README on GitHub or in your local clone
- Read the Before you start and Introduction sections
- Review the vocabulary and basic steps of pen testing sections
- Pick a tool category and follow its links to research one tool
- 3
Get the most out of it
- Read the legal and ethics notes before using any listed tool
- Practice with the challenges section rather than real targets
- Check the date of any linked tool or resource before relying on it
- Combine the reading list with a current pen-testing course or documentation
Downloads
Strengths
- Covers a broad range of pen-testing areas in one place
- Includes plain-language definitions of common security terms
- Repeatedly emphasizes legal and ethical boundaries and practicing on challenges, not real targets
Trade-offs
- Archived, so links and tool recommendations may be out of date
- Mostly a list of pointers; the README gives little step-by-step instruction
How it compares
| Project | Stars | Type | Level | Updated | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| hacker-roadmap (this) | 15.7k | Curated list | beginner | 3.1 years ago | Beginners who want an overview of penetration testing concepts and vocabulary |
| PayloadsAllTheThings | 82.3k | Curated list | beginner | 7 days ago | Penetration testers who want a quick reference of payload variations for a known vulnerability class |
| fsociety | 12.4k | Dev tool | advanced | 4 months ago | Security students who want to read and run a range of classic pentest scripts in one place |
| h4cker | 30k | Curated list | beginner | 14 days ago | Students looking for a structured starting point in cybersecurity |
| juice-shop | 14.3k | App | beginner | 7 days ago | Security students learning web vulnerabilities hands-on |
| spiderfoot | 24.2k | App | intermediate | 7 months ago | Security professionals doing reconnaissance during penetration tests or red team exercises |
Stats synced from GitHub. The assessment above was drafted with AI from the project's README on 2026-10-29 and may miss recent changes — check the README before relying on a command. MIT licence: free to use, modify and distribute, including commercially, as long as you keep the copyright notice.