Metasploitable 2 Penetration Testing Lab

📌 Overview

This project demonstrates a full penetration testing engagement conducted on a vulnerable virtual machine, within a controlled lab environment.

The objective was to identify security vulnerabilities, exploit them using standard tools, and document the findings in a structured penetration testing report.

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🎯 Objectives

• Perform reconnaissance and identify active hosts
• Conduct port scanning and service enumeration
• Analyze vulnerabilities in exposed services
• Exploit identified vulnerabilities
• Perform post-exploitation activities
• Document findings and provide remediation recommendations

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🛠️ Tools Used

• Nmap – Network scanning and service enumeration
• Metasploit Framework – Exploitation of known vulnerabilities
• arp-scan – Local network host discovery

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🌐 Lab Environment

• Target Machine: Metasploitable 2 VM (192.168.0.4)
• Attacker Machine: Parrot Security Linux VM (192.168.0.6)
• Network: NAT Network

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🔍 Methodology

The assessment followed a structured approach aligned with industry practices:

1. Reconnaissance
2. Scanning & Enumeration
3. Vulnerability Analysis
4. Exploitation
5. Post-Exploitation

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🚨 Key Vulnerabilities Identified

CVE ID	Vulnerability	Impact
CVE-2011-2525	vsftpd Backdoor	Full system compromise
CVE-2021-44142	Samba RCE	Remote root access
CVE-2012-2925	Weak Web Applications	Data theft, SQL Injection
CVE-2011-4862	Telnet	Cleartext credentials

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💥 Exploitation Summary

• Identified vulnerable services using scanning techniques
• Exploited Samba vulnerability using Metasploit
• Successfully gained remote shell access to the target system
• Verified system-level access through command execution

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🔐 Post-Exploitation

• Performed basic privilege escalation checks
• Observed system configuration and environment
• Evaluated potential persistence mechanisms

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🛡️ Recommendations

• Remove or update outdated services (vsftpd, Samba)
• Disable anonymous FTP access
• Replace Telnet with secure alternatives like SSH
• Implement firewall rules and monitoring solutions
• Conduct regular vulnerability assessments

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📄 Report

Detailed findings and methodology are documented in the full penetration testing report available in this repository.

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⚠️ Disclaimer

This project was conducted in a controlled lab environment for educational purposes only.
No real-world systems were targeted or harmed.

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👨‍💻 Author

Chirag B S
Ethical Hacker / Cybersecurity Enthusiast