Cisco’s Ethical Hacker Course: Is It Worth Your Time?
Cisco’s Ethical Hacker course, available for free on the Cisco Networking Academy platform, introduces you to ethical hacking, concepts in cybersecurity, regulations, organizations that govern cybersecurity, and tools used in ethical hacking. The course also introduces tools that are used both ethically and unethically. Completing the course gives you a badge on Credly and a certificate that you can publish on LinkedIn.
Is This Course For You?
- Newbies: If you’re starting your IT journey with a basic understanding of Information Technology, this course is a good starting point. While the course is rated as intermediate level, beginners can still benefit with extra reading to grasp the basics of networking, servers, databases, and web apps. Expect to spend around 100 hours on the course due to the extra reading required.
- Mid-Level Professionals: Those with an intermediate level of experience should expect to spend around 70 hours on the course.
- Experienced IT Professionals: If you have in-depth knowledge of networking, servers, Linux terminals, and web app deployment, this course can refresh your knowledge of cybersecurity. With your experience, expect to spend around 20 hours on the course. You’ll likely find the definition of terms and stages of ethical hacking familiar.
What to Expect
- The course introduces you to tools, defines how they are used, and provides straightforward laboratory instructions for using the tools.
- You’ll gain experience using Kali Linux and the terminal.
- You’ll need to pass chapter quizzes with a minimum score of 70% and a final exam with an 80% passing mark.
Is This Course Enough to Become an Ethical Hacking Expert?
No, completing this course doesn’t automatically make you an expert in ethical hacking. While the course introduces various concepts and tools, practical experience is different.
Why Take This Course?
The Ethical Hacker course is a prerequisite for getting a certificate in ethical hacking from Cisco. After finishing the ethical hacker course, you can participate in a Capture The Flag challenge. Passing the challenge earns you a badge in offensive security and a certificate in ethical hacking from Cisco.
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