The Role of Privilege Escalation

Gaining access is only the first step; gaining power is the real goal. This article explains the role of privilege escalation, the process an attacker uses to elevate their permissions from a standard user to an administrator (or 'root'). You'll understand why this is a critical phase in nearly every major cyberattack. For aspiring penetration testers and defenders, learning to spot and stop privilege escalation is a key skill in protecting an organization's most valuable assets.