Best Free Courses to Become An Ethical Hacker
Quite a lot has been said, heard, and read about hacking, hackers, and ethical hacking. Not everyone understands what it is all about because hacking has some misconceptions about it. This write-up aims to let you in on what ethical hacking is and the best free courses you can take to become an ethical hacker.
What Is Ethical Hacking?
Ethical hacking is the act of testing, finding, and locating the vulnerabilities and weaknesses of information systems and computers bearing in mind and replicating the actions and intent of malicious hackers. It is also referred to as penetration testing, red teaming or intrusion testing.
Who Is An Ethical Hacker?
An ethical hacker is a professional who specializes in system security and applies the hacking knowledge and skills to discover the vulnerabilities of an information system to enhance its security and for defensive purposes. An ethical hacker, also called “white hat,” is usually hired by the owner of an information system to conduct penetration tests and provide answers to the following questions:
- What information or systems can attacker access?
- What can an attacker find in the target?
- What can an attacker do or carry out with the available or susceptible information?
- Does anyone at the target system suspect or notice the hacking attempt?
Is Ethical Hacking Legal?
Ethical hacking is legal as long as it is the owner of the information system that requests for a penetration test to be carried out. However, an ethical hacker must get a written express permission to carry out the analysis on the systems. Also, he must inform the company of the weaknesses and vulnerabilities that an attacker may exploit but must leave the system the way it was found without creating any weakness that could be exploited in the future. Also, the ethical hacker must keep a record of everything done on the system, and must not violate privacy laws.
Best Free Courses to Become an Ethical Hacker
The course provides in-depth basics to help you start ethical hacking on a firm footing.
- Master of Projects – Free Ethical Hacker Training
The course covers the basics to advanced level of white hat hacking.
- Cyber Degrees – Cryptography (University of Maryland)
The course covers the basics and practical applications necessary for the mastery of ethical hacking.
- Offensive Security – Metasploit Unleashed
It is a self-paced course that has everything you need to know past the intermediate level. The course requires a reliable internet connection.
- EA Academy – The Complete Cyber Security & Hacking Course
This course covers the basics of ethical hacking to the advanced level with easy-to-understand videos.
- Cybrary – The Art of Exploitation
This video is a 3-hour on-demand video covering vulnerabilities and exploitation. The course is entirely free.
