Turn a $10 Raspberry Pi Zero W Into a Serious WiFi Hacking Tool
Mr.smashy has a guide explaining how to convert that Raspberry Pi Zero W into a WiFi hacking gadget by installing the right software.
The Raspberry Pi Zero W single-board computer (SBC) is an amazing product. For just $10 — and sometimes as low as $5 — you can purchase a completely usable computer with built-in WiFi and Bluetooth capabilities. You’ll need a couple of accessories to actually use it, including an SD card and power source, but you can still have a functioning headless computer for under $25. Self-described infosec nerd mr.smashy has a guide explaining how to turn that Raspberry Pi Zero W into a serious WiFi hacking tool by simply installing the right software.
As we always do when we run an article like this, we need to explain that we do not condone black hat hacking or any other kind of criminal activity — nor does mr.smashy. A gadget like this should only be used for white hat hacking, educational purposes, and network diagnostics. With that disclaimer out of the way, we can move onto this project.
This setup won’t give you all of the capability that you’d get from more robust hardware, but it does demonstrate just how much you can do with an affordable SBC. You’ll start by installing the Raspbian operating system on a SD card — ideally one at least 32GB. A USB battery bank will keep your Raspberry Pi powered up when you’re out and about. Because you’ll be running the Raspberry Pi headless (without a display), you’ll also need a smartphone, tablet, or a separate computer with Bluetooth to control it. Follow the usual procedures to setup WiFi and enable SSH.
From there, you can install the Re4son kernel for Raspberry Pi and then switch the WiFi interface to monitoring mode. You’ll still be able to connect your phone to the Raspberry Pi via the Bluetooth connection, and mr.smashy links to a guide on how to do that. With your WiFi interface in monitoring mode, you can install and use tools like Aircrack-ng and Bettercap to handle the actual hacking. What you decide to do with those tools is up to you, but you’ll have a WiFi hacking tool that costs less than dinner for two at Chipotle.