Malicious hacking is a crime in most countries; however, catching those hackers requires the same skills, and even better. An ethical hacking online course certifies an individual’s proficiency in network security, especially towards creating counter-actions against any of the malicious attacks by hackers.
What is the Certified Ethical Hacking (CEH) Certification?
CEH is a certification for people working in information technology willing to specialize in identifying and counteracting the malicious hackers by gaining the same knowledge and tools that the hackers have been using. For a long time, private companies and government have even been taking help from hackers who start working ethically. The main aim of CEH is to provide credentials and maintain a standard of ethical hacking amongst IT professionals as well as the public.
How to become one?
People who have been working in the IT industry and have an experience of at least 2 years in a security-related job can directly apply to take the EC exam. People who do not have a job experience shall have to attend a training program at one of the certified training centers. The training can either be completed through an accredited online program or a training center. The training program prepares the students to differentiate between malicious hackers and rule out other hobbyists and hackers.
The cost of this 5-day training is somewhat around $850, and for those who do not wish to take the training is $100. Thereafter, the voucher price for the examination would cost you an additional $950.
The Course Details:
The CEH training program has been specially designed for the applicants to be able to take up the CEH certification 312-50 exam. It involves a total of 270 hacking techniques, spread over a collection of 18 modules. Additionally, it also involves real-life scenarios mimicking the situation of 140 labs. The course is run intensively for 8 hours daily over 5 days.
The ultimate goal of this training program is to prepare the applicants to crack the exam and also to be ready to face any of the hacking situations that may arise during their career as a certified ethical hacker.
About the CEH examination:
The CEH certification 312-40 exam tests an applicant against a total number of 18 areas, with 125 multiple-choice questions. The exam lasts for 4 hours and comprises questions from the following aspects:
System Hacking, Enumeration, Introduction to Ethical Hacking, Footprinting and reconnaissance, Scanning networks, Denial of service, Social engineering, Malware threats, Sniffing, Hacking web servers, Session hijacking, Hacking wireless networks, Hacking web applications, SQL injection, Evading IDS, firewalls, and honeypots, Hacking mobile platforms, Cryptography, and Cloud Computing.
What is Job Profile like?
IT security is one of the fastest-growing professions throughout the world. As per the Bureau of Labor Statistics, USA, the required growth for the ethical hackers over the next decade is going to increase at least by 26%. Moreover, the mean annual salary that a professional hacker takes home exceeds over $95,000. A quick job search on the internet would also allow you to go through the abundance of job opportunities that are prevailing currently.
A few Tips to Prepare for the examination:
If you are dedicated enough to take up the CEH examination and crack it through in your first attempt, here are some tips for you that you can follow to set up a foolproof success plan:
- Generate a list of topics to be covered: You should have a list of topics that you need to cover to pass the examination. Try to cover all of them, one at a time, alongside revising the previously studies topics over and over again. If you feel you do not have enough time to prepare all the topics, concentrate on your strong topics.
- Generate a Realistic Study Plan: Prepare a schedule and arrange the hours that you need to commit to each topic. Do not get stuck to any one topic. You need to cover all the topics within the stipulated time to be able to crack the exam in your very first attempt.
- Use real-world examples to study: Real-world stories get stuck to your mind and also provide you with a good example to remember something. Moreover, going through some of the best examples would also help you out in real-life situations that you might face once you become a professional ethical hacker.
- Apply for the examination beforehand: Taking up the CEH certification test requires 2 years of job experience. However, if you do not have that much of an experience. Do not wait for that period to complete. File up your application as soon as possible and then take your time to prep yourself for giving the examination. Once you have applied for the test and fulfilled the fee requirements, it would motivate you, even more, to prepare as soon as possible and give your best, saving you a lot of time.
- Take up Mock Tests and Practice exams: A lot of times, some of the questions might get repeated in the examination after a duration of time. Taking up mock tests and appearing for online practice exams will provide you with an idea about the examination format. It would also allow you to divide your time accordingly to be able to give adequate time to answer all the questions.
If you are interested in getting into IT security or already are a part of it, this is the perfect time to gain the CEH certification and increase your authenticity. There is moderate competition and the opportunities available in the field are many. All you need to do is sit in for preparing for the exams for a few weeks and your future career might completely change with the help of CEH.