Kali vs Parrot | Review on two best OS for cyber security experts
Few say Linux based distributions are the only preferred OS for hacking. This is not completely true. Professional hackers work on both windows and Linux operating systems depending on requirement and personal choice of use. Hacking finally boils down to expertise of computer and network environment. Having knowledge of few prebuilt hacking tools cannot make you a hacker. Hacking is, finding loop holes in the system and sneaking into the system through that. What you do with the system and its data is left to you. Hacking is illegal, you wouldn’t want somebody to sneak into your system and access you personal data right?. However no system is 100% hack proof. There are people protecting common people’s data from hackers by designing better secure systems. They are called Ethical hackers. Go with Linux if you are really into ethical hacking because Linux is used in majority of the computers, IOT devices and all other smart home appliances.
So what is Linux?
Linux is a family of open source UNIX like operating systems. Popular Linux distributions include Debian, fedora and Ubuntu. There are tons of distributions built on Linux kernel as Linux is open source, i.e you can get the source code and modify it to your need. Linux is the most secure OS, as its source is open. Anyone can review it and make sure there are no bugs or loop holes. You have access to everything here, you can build anything to your need on top of it and ask for help with the community if stuck.
There are tons of other operating systems for various applications, lets focus on hacking. Among all other OS for hacking, Kali and Parrot are the ones at the peak. Kali and Parrot both are Debian based. You remember Debian from earlier right?. Lets get into the details of how 2 fruits of the same tree are?.
Kali Linux
History:
It was developed by Mati Aharoni and Devon Kearns of Offensive Security through the rewrite of BackTrack. Originally it was designed with a focus on kernel auditing, from which it got its name Kernel Auditing Linux. Kali Linux is based on the Debian Testing branch. Most packages Kali uses are imported from the Debian repositories. Kali is designed for digital forensics and penetration testing. It is maintained and funded by Offensive Security.
Why use Kali Linux
- Kali is free to use.
- Kali comes with 600 penetration testing and security analysis tools.
- It is open source, its source code is available for you to tweak around
- Supports multiple languages.
- Can be used as live bootable system. You need not install it, it can be used just by creating a bootable USB stick.
- It ca be used on wide variety of ARM devices as well, like Raspberry Pi.
- Can run within a Docker container
Hardware requirements
- On the low end Kali can be set up as a basic Secure Shell (SSH) server with no desktop, using as little as 128 MB of RAM (512 MB recommended) and 2 GB of disk space.
- On the higher end, with Kali desktop it requires at least 2 GB of RAM and 20 GB of disk space.
Lower end, with no desktop means there wont be any Graphical User Interface (GUI). SSH is Command Line Interface (CLI) i.e you can interact with the system only using text like commands. As there is no graphical output by the system it doesn’t require much hardware specs.
You might have seen hackers typing some alien language at super speed in movies. That is, they are talking to the computer using commands which is more fast and flexible than GUI. You dont have to install the OS differently to have graphical or command interface. By default installing GUI comes with a terminal where you can also talk to computer in the so called alien language.
Parrot sec
Parrot is a Debian based operating system with a focus on security, privacy, and development. It is designed for penetration testing, vulnerability assessment and mitigation, computer forensics and anonymous browsing. Parrot Home is the base edition of Parrot designed for daily use, and it targets regular users who need a lightweight system.
Parrot OS was first released in 2013 and was developed by a team of security experts, Linux enthusiasts and open source developers. The team was headed by Lorenzo Faletra.
Features of Parrot OS
- Parrot is free to use.
- parrot is light weight and super fast. IT doesn’t require more hardware specs.
- can be installed on ARM devices as well.
- Boot it in live mode using a bootable USB drive.
- Docker images are available.
Hardware requirements
- Parrot claims to run on 250 MB RAM devices also. But 512 MB of RAM and 16 GB of device space is recommended.
We saw basic info about both operating systems. Lets compare them now
Kali vs Parrot
Hardware requirements
Kali is hardware hungry. It requires more than 2 GB of RAM and 20 GB of hard disk space. Whereas Parrot can live with 512 MB of RAM. If you have a low spec computer running Kali might be difficult and it is not recommended. If your system has enough hardware no problem, Kali will run smoothly. Parrot is very light and it is super fast. It can run on low end machines as well.
Graphical appearance
Parrot comes with MATE and KDE desktop environment. A top panel shows system processing and temperature in a graphical way. Applications are accessible from the top panel. Kali comes with GNOME desktop environment. Both OS can be customised the way you want.
Inbuilt Tools
Kali comes preinstalled with 600 hacking tools. Parrot also comes with inbuilt tools but not as much as Kali. But few tools are there in parrot which are missing in Kali. Few are,
- Tor : Also known as The Onion Router, is a distributed network that anonymizes Internet browsing. It is designed in a way that the IP Address of the client using Tor is hidden from the server that the client is visiting.
- Onion Share : Onion Share is an open-source utility that can be used to share files of any size over the TOR network securely and anonymously.
- AnonSurf : Anonsurf is a utility that makes the operating system communication go over TOR or other anonymizing networks. According to Parrot, AnonSurf secures your web browser and anonymizes your IP.
Conclusion
Both Operating systems can do what other OS does without a problem. Hacking is not just about knowing few tools. Tools are there just to automate few tasks. If you want to be a hacker you should be able to write your own scripts. If you are a beginner searching for the best OS to pick. Then i would say you are worrying too much about something not necessary. First get used to working with Linux environment. Get comfortable with Linux commands and command line interface. Have good grasp on any one modern programming language. I prefer Python but i leave that choice to you. Learn scripting.
Start with Ubuntu, it is user friendly and will teach you what Linux is. As you begin to understand Linux concepts and when you reach your comfortabality zone then think of jumping to parrot or Kali.
Until then, Stay curious… Stay creative…
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