Vulnerability assessement

Vulnerability assessment is the second phase of penetration testing. After you have gained the initial information and a main layout of your target during the information gathering phase, you can now scan the target for possible vulnerabilities for future exploits. The aim of this important step is simply to find potential security leaks that allow a user to gain an unauthorized access to a given system. Backtrack 5 comes with vulnerability scanner tools; that i am going to cover in detail in future articles; but there are also online tools that you can also use.
In Backtrack the vulnerability Assessment category is subdivided into: 

1-Vulnerability scanners: the most famous ones are OpenVAS & Nessus. You also have lynis and mantra.


2-Network Assessment: It includes CISCO tools, Network fuzzers, Open Source Assessment and VOIP Fuzzers.

3-Web Application Assessment

4-Database Assessment

                                 vulnerability assessment in action

Vulnerability Analysis is  a passive process in which you use tools or utilities, sometimes software to analyze network traffic and systems to identify any security flaws or mis-configuration that increase vulnerability to attacks. You can consider it as an advanced stage of information gathering or foot-printing.
The active phase of penetration testing is Exploitation.
Assessment can have both sides: defensive or offensive. It can be used to discover any security breaches to later find the adequate solutions to fix them; and this what a penetration tester is expected to do; or it can also be used with  malicious intentions to exploit  available vulnerabilities to gain an unauthorized access to a system.