Start Your First Lab in Cyber Security

Last Updated : 6 Feb, 2026

We’re using a free lab on TryHackMe, a hands-on cybersecurity training platform that offers virtual machines for safe ethical hacking practice. Below are the steps to solve the first lab:

Step 1: Start the Virtual Machine

  • Click the "Start Machine" button. Here is the Link
  • Go to the link and start the machine.
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  • Wait for some time till the machine starts.
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Step 2: Open the Terminal

  • On the left (VM screen), click the Terminal icon to open the command-line interface
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Step 3: Run dirb to Find Hidden Pages

To find hidden URLs, we will use a tool called dirb. This tool uses a brute-force approach, by taking a list of potential page names and testing one by one if they exist in your website.

  • Type the command:
dirb http://fakebank.thm

This will scan the site and reveal hidden paths like:

Output:

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Step 4: Visit the Hidden Pages in Browser

Use the browser in the VM to open the discovered pages:

  • http://fakebank.thm/images: No useful info.
  • http://fakebank.thm/bank-deposit: Admin Portal Page for money transfer.

Step 5: Perform the Bank Transfer

On the /bank-transfer page:

  • Deposit to Account: 8881
  • Amount to Deposit: $2000
  • Click "Deposit Money"
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Step 6: Verify Deposit

You’ll receive a message like: “Success, Deposit complete”

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  • Click “Return to Your Account”
  • On your account page, look above your balance for the flag.
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This is a typical technique used in web penetration testing brute-forcing directories to find admin or sensitive pages. Always perform such tasks with permission in legal environments

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