Certified Ethical Hacker (C|EH) - Build Your Career with the Most in-Demand Ethical Hacking Certification Program in the World

The total time it takes to become a C|EH can vary by student, but the typical answer is 5 days. C|EH official training is structured as 5-day Bootcamp style training with testing typically delivered at the end of the 5th day as a 4-hour exam. Students who follow an on-demand or self-paced course through iClass or decide to defer their testing date may take longer to achieve certification.

The C|EH program and C|EH exam cover a variety of topics that center around the Tactics and Procedures required to be a tactical cybersecurity professional. Focusing on the entire kill-chain process, C|EH covers a variety of topics from foot printing and reconnaissance, to scanning, gaining access, maintaining access, and covering your tracks. This 5-phase ethical hacking process applies to a variety of scenarios including traditional on-premises networks, cloud, hybrid, IoT systems, and stretches across a variety of topologies and application environments. Students will learn a variety of tools and techniques across this evaluation process as well as how hackers will utilize the same TTPs to hack into organizations.

There are no specific prerequisites for the C|EH program, however we strongly recommend candidates possess a minimum of 2 years’ experience in IT security before joining a C|EH training program. C|EH training is about testing systems and using them for purposes not originally intended, candidates should understand the basic functions of those IT systems before attempting to hack them. (Example: C|EH will teach the process of host evaluation leading to enumeration, in this process trainees will scan downrange targets using common scanning techniques such as Nmap which will respond with a list of ports, enumerating those ports and the services running on them can be used to expose common vulnerabilities and weaknesses in systems. The C|EH program will not teach you what a port is, that is essential knowledge you must have to be successful in the class.) If you do not possess the foundational skills in IT and Networking, we recommend starting with our free cybersecurity Essentials Series found here: 

While the C|EH program and certification stand on their own are  not required to be taken in the sequence of a track, we have many students that are focused on a specific specialization such as digital forensics, threat intelligence, penetration testing, or executive leadership. To support those specializations, EC-Council has published a series of certification tracks that focus on stacking the competencies required to excel in those specializations. To view the available tracks and see what types of careers they lead into, Download our Cyber Career Track guide.

Students attending official training for C|EH, either through our online division iClass, or in person at an authorize training center will receive the most comprehensive ethical hacking program on the market. The training resources stretch well beyond what you may be used to in a typical bootcamp style course as C|EH not only supports you in the training program but also supports you after training and well into your career as a C|EH. Our new framework in C|EH, Learn, Certify, Engage, Compete provides you with all the courseware, documentation, cheat sheets, and hands-on labs hosted in our Cyber Range to complete the 5 days of training. Students also receive exam vouchers to attempt the certification exam and free retakes in the event you aren’t successful on your first attempt. To help prepare you for the exam, you will also receive exam prep where you can practice in a mock exam environment. Supporting you post certification; we have designed our Engage practice range with a mock organization where you will take place (on your own time and at your own pace) in a complete ethical hacking engagement. Starting with your initial scanning and recon exercise, you will foot print the target network, identify vulnerabilities and follow the entire process learned in C|EH as you assess the target organization, leading all the way up to full exploitation of the targets where you will hack into web servers, IoT devices, as well as IT and OT systems. After you complete your first engagement against the target organization, you will move onto Compete, where you can take part in monthly Global Hacking Competitions available exclusively to Certified Ethical Hackers. With new competition scenarios each month, you will be able to test your skills in malware analysis and ransomware, SCADA, and ICS environments as you hack your way into a Power Grid System or potentially take over a water treatment facility, Hack into Web Applications as we focus on web server vulnerabilities, and much more. To further support your continuous learning and skill development, Students of the Official C|EH training program also receive our curated Ethical Hacking Video Libraries through CodeRed where you will have access to focused titles, 2 to 4 hour courses delivered online in topics like Python for Pen testers, Opensource intelligence, Wireshark for Ethical Hackers, Ethical Hacking with Nmap, Windows Penetration Testing Essentials, Next Gen Firewalls, Applied Secure Smart City, Burp Suite: Web App Pen Testing, and more. The C|EH training program was designed to support you as you learn the ethical hacking practice, provide you with hands-on labs and challenges, expose you to your first ethical hacking engagement, hone your skills through competition, and support your continuous learning with specially curated titles directly related to the ethical hacking space.

Yes! Every concept taught in C|EH is backed up by hands on labs hosted in our Cyber Range. The training itself is divided roughly 50/50 into lecture & discussion (50%) and hands-on labs (50%). Additional hands-on practice is available in our labs with objective based CTF style flags to challenge your critical thinking and applied knowledge, then reinforced with our practice range, followed by 12 months of live competitions all executed in our Cyber Range 100% hands-on and applied. We believe strongly you can’t really learn to hack by reading a book, you must practice, if you are considering C|EH, roll your sleeves up and get ready for an intensive hands-on program where you will practice and hone your trade craft as an ethical hacker!

Like the question above “What does C|EH Cover” Security professionals attending this program will learn the professional practice of ethical hacking. You will get hands-on with the Cyber Kill chain, you will learn how to evaluate target systems for vulnerabilities, misconfiguration and weaknesses, you’ll learn how to find the weakest link in an organization through concepts like social engineering, most of all, you will learn how hackers operate, what tactics they use, and how to apply those tactics in a professional setting to identify weaknesses in your organization and apply remediation strategies before your organization becomes the next victim of a cyberattack or breach.

Training is available globally through EC-Council iClass (https://iclass.eccouncil.org) as well as through the world’s largest network of Authorized Training Centers. EC-Council has over 900 Authorized training centers covering 145 countries. If you are seeking credit bearing programs at a college or university, EC-Council University offers bachelor’s and master’s programs in cybersecurity that incorporate C|EH into the curriculum, and we also have a network of over 1,200 colleges and universities that teach C|EH as a part of their degree programs using our official Academia Courseware and Labs. Look for the Authorized Training Center Logo, or the Official Academia Partner Logo when selecting your training location.

Yes! C|EH is available Online in both Instructor Led self-paced learning and live Instructor led. Visit Here for more information.

iClass, EC-Council’s official eLearning division provides two primary forms of training, Masterclass and iLearn.

Masterclass provides student with a Live Online, Instructor led class schedule with set times where our award-winning instructors will guide you through the C|EH training module by module incorporating hands on lab time, breakout sessions for discussions and a live presentation of all course materials.

iLearn is EC-Councils On-Demand training option. We have hand selected the best instructors, flown them to our Albuquerque based studio and produced professional pre-recorded video lectures and lab walkthroughs that can be accessed through your iClass student account any time, 24x7x365.

No, while most students elect to attend official training receiving the professional guidance of a certified instructor, others prefer to simply study on their own without official training. Materials are available for purchase on the EC-Council Store if you wish to simply study on your own, this is what we label as self-study. Any student electing the self-study route will need to apply for exam eligibility as they did not attend official training.

Getting certified is about validating your knowledge, C|EH is trusted by employers across the globe as a baseline cyber security certification. Certified Ethical Hackers hold a variety of job titles and roles because the ethical hacking process is fundamental to many cyber security operations. While some organizations have Ethical Hackers in their job role framework, it often takes on other forms with specialization such as Network Defender, Penetration Tester, Secure Coder, Cloud Security Engineer, Security Architect, Auditor, and even opens doors into leadership roles.

Authorized Training Centers are typically computer training centers, consulting groups, and education companies who have partnered with EC-Council to offer official training leading to the C|EH Certification. ATCs must apply with EC-Council where we individually evaluate each potential partner and their business practice. Once approved, ATC’s must maintain certified instructors (CEIs) also vetted by EC-Council for certification and teaching experience, then the ATC is provided access to heavily discounted Training Materials, Cyber Ranges, Practice Ranges, and Competition passes for their students. ATCs compete each year across the globe to be recognized in our Circle of Excellence award ceremonies where the top trainers, and top training centers receive awards and recognition for their accomplishments in affecting the cybersecurity workforce. Organizations who carry the ATC logo with EC-Council run official training programs to standards that are upheld and monitored closely ensuring you have a great experience when you enroll in a C|EH training program. If your training center is not an ATC and claims to train you in C|EH, beware, we see very high failure rates on exams, frustrated students, outdated content, and a general lack of professionalism with organizations who do not go through the proper channels to run official, authorized programs. Often, students must fight for refunds from these types of centers and end up attending training either through our own iClass division, or at one of our ATCs where they will get the C|EH training and certification experience, they were originally seeking.

To ensure instructors understand the subject matter they teach and provide a great experience to our Certification candidates, EC-Council implemented a Certified EC-Council Instructor (CEI) program. Many CEIs are industry practitioners who also teach, but the CEI program is a way of ensuring the instructors carry an active C|EH credential and have sufficient experience teaching/instructing. To see the CEI requirements these instructors must meet, feel free to review our CEI application process Click here 

No. Attending Official training is one of the two ways to become eligible to take the C|EH exam. If you have completed Official Training through EC-Council or through one of our Authorized Training centers, you will not need to apply for exam eligibility, you will not need to pay the $100 Application Fee, and you will not have to wait for reference checks to be approved. Authorized Training Centers have the contracted right to deliver exams to you directly after completing your official training. If the training center you have gone to advises you in any other way, please give us a call and we will help to sort out the confusion, or validate your training was at an Authorized Training Center.

Yes, the fastest way to get started with C|EH is through our iClass program. Visit Here and get started right away.

C|EH Training is available all over the world in a variety of different formats, from online self-paced, online live, in person bootcamps at ATCs and incorporated into education programs at colleges and universities. The program cost by region and by format can vary. C|EH Training is normally very affordable and with broad availability, you as the potential student have many options you can evaluate. We are more than happy to help guide you through this process, feel free to contact us to validate a price, validate the status of an ATC, or receive pricing for online training programs. The fastest way to reach a team local to you is to fill out the form on this page and we will reach out to you shortly thereafter.

Funding options are tied to the organization providing the training as well as funding options for the region you are in. EC-Council and many of its partners have a variety of options for funding your training including payment plans, discount plans, even military and tuition assistance programs with your employers

Yes! If you enroll as a student in ECCU and are pursuing your bachelors or master’s degree, many of the courses align to industry certifications throughout the program. CIS 404 Hacker Techniques, Tools, and Incident Handling maps to the Certified Ethical Hacker exam. Students who complete this course through ECU will be eligible to attempt the C|EH Exam. For more information, visit Here

Delivery formats in education, specifically academic education and training can vary greatly. While the content students go through is the same, the delivery formats vary greatly. If you are pursuing a degree at ECCU or one of our Academia partners, you will likely be enrolled into a course that is delivered over a semester, often lasting between 8 and 12 weeks following a traditional academic format. Students will go through lectures with lab time, participate in threaded discussions, complete mid-term and final assessments and receive college credit for the course, then independently pursue certification by taking the examination. This is a great option if you are looking for a more engaged experience with your school where they can focus on the academic elements of the program and often more rigorous progression assessments. Training, on the other hand, is often run in a condensed bootcamp. C|EH is an intensive 5-day program delivered in person or online where the instructor will take you through intensive lectures followed by hands-on practice of the concepts taught. This five-day format is referred to by many as the “firehose” training approach. You will be exposed to the entire domain set of the C|EH program over 5 days with 2.5 days mixed throughout the course of hands-on practice, demonstration, and challenges. Frequently, our ATCs will host examination at the end of the 5-day program late in the afternoon resulting in 5 days of training, 4 hours of certification all in one week. You then have access after the course for 2 years to courseware and 6 months for the hands-on labs. With C|EH v12, you also have post course access to the Engage Practice Range, the Global C|EH Competitions, and the CodeRed learning libraries for continuous education.