It is common to come across the term hacking nowadays. Hacking usually refers to data breaches that we hear or read as a part of news headlines frequently. The data shared over the network may be compromised, resulting in substantial monetary losses and damages to the company’s brand reputation, for example, as per one of the reports. Social Media account data leak occurred, and personal data of over 4 billion users were compromised. Another report suggests that the number of hacking instances has increased by more than 50% in the first half of 2019 compared to the first half of 2018. Recent trends suggest that data breaches are growing, and we need to bring focus on cybersecurity.
The present article will shed some light on this field and online CEH courses to begin the journey in this space.
What is Ethical Hacking?
Hacking refers to the techniques and practices followed to access personal or confidential data by illegal means or without authorization with the intention of misuse or abuse. Ethical hacking, which is similar to hacking except for the purpose, is carried out to protect confidential data from threats and abuse. In simple words, ethical hackers are individuals with intentions to develop ways to protect a company, institute, or client’s data by finding the software system’s vulnerability. Ethical hackers are sometimes also referred to as ‘white-hat hackers’ and are similar to security personnel who protect the law. Ethical hackers perform hacking with authorization and in a legitimate manner. Some of the activities carried out by ethical hackers involve scanning ports, finding vulnerabilities in the system, performing hacking on wireless encryption, web applications, or server hijacking.
Who can be an Ethical Hacker?
Any person who is passionate about problem-solving and loves challenging tasks. A person who believes in creative and innovative approaches can work as a good and successful ethical hacker. Individuals looking for an ethical hacking career should have in-depth knowledge of scripting, networking, intrusion analysis. It is suggested to achieve certification to become a promising ethical hacker. This certification validates an individual’s capability to understand risks and vulnerabilities in the security of an organization. The certification program helps individuals to learn and perform hacking in a lawful manner.
Tips on Opting for the right Ethical Hacking Course
It is very critical to opt for the correct ethical hacking course. It is not an easy task to select the right course, and one needs to keep many points in mind before opting for any course.
- To opt for the course, one needs to be aware of ethical hacking in its entirety and understand the sub-topics it contains. Some examples of sub-topics include network sniffing, cryptography, administrators, and security officers, etc. To know more about the available topics, one can connect with experienced security professionals.
- While selecting a sub-topic, keep in mind the career prospects such as job security, income, work-load, and scope of training.
- Once the sub-topic is fixed, Individuals can seek guidance on the online courses available inline with their aspirations.
- Individuals require to ensure that the training program in consideration offers balanced content, including both practical and theoretical knowledge. Courses with biased content are not advisable and can result in a lack of good hold on the subject.
- The market value of courses is significant, and individuals need to verify the program’s market value before opting for it. The excellent market value of the course ensures that individuals stand out in any competition. Online reviews are another way to understand details about the courses.
- The training mode is a vital aspect to consider, which can be either self-paced, in person, or live online.
Top Training Programs to Become Certified Ethical Hacker
Certified Ethical Hacker Certification: EC Council.
Certified ethical hacking, commonly referred to as CEH in short, is the most comprehensive certification course in ethical hacking throughout the world and provided by the reputed association EC Council. This course allows individuals to learn and validate the basics of ethical hacking. It enables individuals to systematically inspect the overall system and network infrastructures for any loopholes for malicious hackers’ exploitation. Individuals will learn to assess security systems in their entirety and help to determine the possibility of unauthorized access to organization infrastructures. The sole aim of CEH accreditation is to establish standards and best practices for information security experts in executing ethical hacking jobs. This accreditation fortifies ethical hacking as a self-regulating profession. After the successful training, individuals need to appear for an exam consisting of 125 multiple choice questions with a time limit of 4 hours.
CEH (v10) – Certified ethical hacking Course – Simplilearn.
This online ethical hacking course allows one to get a hold of advanced network packet analysis and system penetration testing techniques. It helps individuals to gain network security skills and prevent their organizations from hackers. Certification course does not require any prerequisites; however, basic knowledge of TCP/IP is recommended. This course is ideal for individuals working in the capacity of site administrators, network security professionals, IT security executives, and numerous security professionals roles. The best thing about the course is that it is based on a blended learning approach which allows individuals to learn ethical hacking with sample use cases, applied projects, and online videos.
Cyber Security Course: uc3m – edX.
Developed by Universidad Carlos III de Madrid faculty, it helps one to learn the cybersecurity fundamentals. Individuals can learn about common threats to systems/networks and ways to prevent them. The course contains lessons and exercises to enhance practical learning. This course will help you to master topics such as cyber forensics or cybersecurity attack monitoring.
Learn ethical hacking Online – LinkedIn Learning.
This course is for all, whether a newcomer or lateral and consists of 20 courses to follow for an ethical hacking learning path. All training courses are prepared by industry experts and help individuals in enhancing their skill set in ethical hacking. The courses take individuals through cybersecurity modules such as Footprinting and Reconnaissance, Session Hijacking, Scanning Networks, Enumeration, etc. This course allows free access for one month.
Summing Up
Cyber threats are increasing in volume and variety. It is quite challenging for companies to prevent any breaches and protect confidential data. Companies are investing aggressively in the cybersecurity space and looking for skilled cybersecurity experts. With strong growth and demand, it is the perfect time to enter the field. Individuals can opt for an online training course to gain skills. Further on, after completing training, individuals can validate their cybersecurity skillsets by appearing for certifications.
