OWASP

The Open Web Application Security Project(OWASP) is a non-profit open community focused on
improving the application software security. Everyone is free to participate in OWASP and all materials available free of cost. This is a best place for learning Application Security.

If you want stay up-to-date with current application security information, always check this site. They have a moderated news feed which gathers application security related news from various source. To subscribe to the news simply copy this link into your news reader. there is a list of sites available here from where OWASP gathers the news.

OWASP Project is the best place if you want to show your skills and to help others. Everyone
is allowed to start or contribute for a project. Some of the projects which I found here is:1. OWASP AntiSamy Java Project- an API for validating rich HTML/CSS input from users without
exposure to cross-site scripting and phishing attacks 2. OWASP Enterprise Security API(ESAPI) Project - a free and open collection of all the security methods that a developer needs to build a secure web application and many more.

As I said earlier all the documents and tools available here are free to download. You can
download your favorite project's tools and documents. here is the link for OWASP software
and documentation repository. Depending upon the projects you choose you will redirected to other third pary servers for download.

The OWASP AppSec conference series is dedicated to bringing together industry, government,
and security researchers and practitioners to discuss the state of the art in application security. Conference schedule details are available in the site. Check the schedule and take part in the conference.

A collection of good videos and books are also available for free download. I really like the design and layout of the site. It look like a clone of Wikipedia.

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Dark Reading

Dark Reading is one of the best sites which provide news portal that focus on IT security. it was launched in May 2006. Since they mainly focus on Security news, they categorized the news as follows: Attacks/breaches, Vulnerabilities, Application Security, Client Security, Perimeter Security, Security Management, Encryption, Network Access Control and Anti virus.Here you can find most up-to-date information about Security.

This site offers free White papers and Reports about Security. You are allowed to download these directly from the site. I have downloaded and read some white papers. They are very informative and useful. They also offer Newsletter Subscription where you can subscribe for daily or weekly newsletter. We can also receive newsletters on a mobile device.

The main page have another section called "Bugs" where they list some enterprise vulnerabilities. They don't accept any articles but we are allowed to post comments on articles. You need to register there for a free account to post comments and to participate in discussion.

They have links to the best security content from all across the web. I found many Ad banners as well as text link Ads in this site. There is no traffic details mentioned in their site. I hope this site is receiving a huge traffic and you can check the same in Alexa.com. I recommend you to advertise in this site if you want to promote your Security related websites, products and services.

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Hack This Site

Hack This Site is the best alternative for HBH. I don't find any major difference between these two sites. They look almost similar to each other in services and content they offer. Just like HBH this site is also a best place to learn hacking. They serve over 5,000+ unique visitors per day and over 2.5 million page views per month. Yet another best place to advertise your hacking and security realted site, product and services.

This site have hacking challenges section where you can test your hacking skills. The following challenges are available:

• Basic missions
• Realistic missions
• Application missions
• Programming missions
• Logic missions
• Extbasic missions
• Javascript missions
• Stego missions
• Irc missions

They have news section where they talk about their site updates and articles section where you can find useful articles on various topics. you can even search and submit articles. All the articles have popularity rank. They do give lectures but they use their IRC server for that and members are allowed to give lectures on their favorite topics. I recommend you to read their guidelines for lecture.

If you have any tool/program or if you own any useful site you can submit them to this site. They will list it in the Useful Stuff section after review. There are many useful stuff available so have a look. One interesting thing I noticed here is their store where they sell some products like T-shirts, Wall clock, Coffee mug. All items have HTS logo and I'm really impressed with the design.

HTS Forum is very active and it is pretty big also. Just like HBH, they cover various topics and most of the threads are very active. I always recommend newbies to join hacking forums because there you can learn a lot by interacting with many skilled hackers.

Visit Hack This Site

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Security Focus

Security Focus is the perfect website to find any kinds of information and articles related to computer security issues. They provide comprehensive security information to all members of the security community. I visit this site most often to read current security and hacking related news.

As per the update from Security Focus. There are 18 million page views a month and 2.5 million unique users annually visiting this site. This clearly shows that this site is the preferred information source for security professionals around the world. Just type "security" in Google, This site comes in the top ten list.

I must say that this site is a heaven for people like me because of the valuable content it offers. There are many articles available which covers various topics like Penetration-Testing, Firewalls, Microsoft, Unix, Intrusion Detection (IDS), Virus and Incident Handling. They have a separate section called "columnist" where they offer knowledgeable issues that affect all members of the security community.

They have a huge Vulnerability Database which provides up-to-date information on vulnerabilities for all platforms and services. You can even search for vulnerabilities by using the CVE (Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures) number. Subscribe to the Vulnerability Database RSS feed to get the instant updates.

I'm currently subscribed to their mailing list. There are currently 31 mailing lists which allow members of the security community from around the world to discuss all manner of security issues. Please don't use your personal mail instead use a separate mail id for this mailing list. Also don't choose all the categories. Choose the one which best suites your interests.

My favourite section in this site is "Jobs". It's not like normal Job Websites. What makes this site unique is they only list Job openings which is related to Security. If you are looking for any Security related job post your Resume here. Also Employers can browse resumes to hire someone for their Job. You have to register before posting resume.

Do you have any Security related tool developed by you? you can submit your tool to Security Focus. They even accept your tools even if they are in Beta stage. I found many useful tools here. You can download the tools but this site will redirect you to the developers site to download the tool.

Visit Security Focus

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