About the Authors

Michael Hixon currently works as a security consultant with a focus on penetration testing and web application security. He previously served in the United States Marine Corp, where he was an infantryman, security forces member, and counterintelligence agent. After the military, he worked as a programmer before changing his focus to IT security. He has worked for the Red Cross, Department of Defense, Department of Justice, and numerous intelligence agencies in his career. He holds a bachelor’s degree in management information systems and multiple professional information-security certifications, including Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), eLearnSecurity Web Application Penetration Tester (eWPT), Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH), and eLearnSecurity Certified Professional Penetration Tester (eCPPT).  He currently runs the Baltimore chapter of the Open Web Application Security Project (OWASP).

Justin Hutchens currently works as a security consultant and regularly performs penetration tests and security assessments for a wide range of clients. He previously served in the United States Air Force, where he worked as an intrusion-detection specialist, network-vulnerability analyst, and malware forensic investigator for a large enterprise network with over 55,000 networked systems. He holds a bachelor's degree in information technology and multiple professional information-security certifications, including Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), Offensive Security Certified Professional (OSCP), eLearnSecurity Web Application Penetration Tester (eWPT), GIAC Certified Incident Handler (GCIH), Certified Network Defense Architect (CNDA), Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH), EC-Council Certified Security Analyst (ECSA), and Computer Hacking Forensic Investigator (CHFI). He is also the writer and producer of Packt's e-learning video course Kali Linux - Backtrack Evolved: Assuring Security by Penetration Testing.