Ethical Hacking Course Syllabus: Subjects, Curriculum, Topics, Books, Skills 2026

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Collegedunia Team

Content Curator | Updated 3+ months ago

Ethical Hacking is one of the most popular courses with the increase in people's interest in internet security and ways for keeping one's personal security safe and secure from different peoples. Ethical Hacking courses cover tools and techniques that are used by hackers and penetration testers and covers 3 main topics in general namely Ethical Hacking, Website Hacking & Security and Mobile & Wireless Security.

Ethical Hacking falls under various branches including Cyber Security courses, Networking, CSE, Information Technology, etc. The syllabus for Ethical Hacking Courses differ for different courses which include various ethical hacking books. Some of the topics that are common in different Ethical Hacking Courses after 12th include Cyber Ethics-Hacking Introduction, Information Gathering, Scanning, Google Hacking Database and many more.

One of the popular Ethical Hacking Courses is Certified Ethical Hacker and covers numerous topics including Introduction to Ethical Hacking, Footprinting and Reconnaissance, Scanning Networks, Social Engineering, Malware Threats, etc. The CEH course curriculum gets updated with the introduction of newer versions to keep one updated with the present trends.

After getting certified from the CEH course, one can become an ethical hacker easily. The average salary of CEH certified Ethical Hacker is INR 5,12,548 per annum as per the records of PayScale. Some of the other popular job profiles for ethical hacking include Information Security Analyst, Security Analyst, Ethical Hacker, Security Consultant and Penetration Tester.

Ethical Hacking Course Syllabus

The syllabus for Ethical Hacking varies for different courses. Some of the common topics that most Ethical Hacking Courses cover are as given below in the table.

Cyber Ethics-Hacking Introduction Information Gathering
Scanning Google Hacking Database
Virus, Worms - Virus Analysis Trojans and Backdoors
Sniffers and keyloggers Social Engineering
Email, DNS, IP spoofing System Hacking and Security
HoneyPots -

Check: Ethical Hacking Udemy 

Certified Ethical Hacker Course Syllabus

The certified Ethical Hacker Course is a course by the Ec-Council and is recognised globally. Their modules are designed for providing a comprehensive ethical hacking and penetration testing training and covers various topics. Here is a list of topics that are covered in the Certified Ethical Hacker Course.

Introduction to Ethical Hacking Footprinting and Reconnaissance
Scanning Networks Enumeration
System Hacking Malware Threats
Sniffing Social Engineering
Denial of Service Session Hijacking
Hacking Web Servers Hacking Web Applications
SQL Injection Hacking Wireless Networks
Hacking Mobile Platforms Evading IDS, Firewalls and Honeypot
Cloud Computing Cryptography

Check: Ethical Hacking Course Fees 

CEH v11 Syllabus

CEH v11 has a total of 20 modules. The topics may differ from other versions. The modules of CEH v11 course are given below in the table.

Modules Topics
1 Introduction to Ethical Hacking
2 Footprinting and Reconnaissance
3 Scanning Networks
4 Enumeration
5 Vulnerability Analysis
6 System Hacking
7 Malware Threats
8 Sniffing
9 Social Engineering
10 Denial-of-Service
11 Session Hijacking
12 Evading IDS, Firewalls, and Honeypots
13 Hacking Web Servers
14 Hacking Web Applications
15 SQL Injection
16 Hacking Wireless Networks
17 Hacking Mobile Platforms
18 IoT and OT Hacking
19 Cloud Computing
20 Cryptography

Hacking Course Syllabus

Hacking Course covers Ethical Hacking, Website Hacking and Security and Mobile and Wireless security in general. Given below in the table is a list of topics that are covered in the above-mentioned.

Ethical Hacking
Information Gathering Cyber Ethics
Hacking Introduction Trojans and Backdoors
Sniffers and keyloggers Google Hacking Database
Virus and Virus Analysis Email, DNS, IP spoofing
HoneyPots Social Engineering
System Hacking and Security -
Website Hacking And Security
SQL Injection XSS Attacks and Countermeasures
LFI/ RFI Attacks and Countermeasures Vulnerability Research
Vulnerability Assessment and Penetration Testing Exploit Writing
Information Disclosure Vulnerabilities Buffer Overflow and Session Hijacking Attacks
Secure Coding Practices -
Mobile And Wireless Security
SMS Forging and Countermeasures Wireless Hacking and Security
VoIP Hacking and Countermeasures -

Cyber Security and Ethical Hacking Course Syllabus

Cyber Security and Ethical Hacking Course covers various areas related to Ethical Hacking such as Cloud Computing, Introduction to Ethical Hacking, Denial of Service, Hacking Mobile Platforms, Social Engineering and more. The table below consists of the list of topics that are covered in various Cyber Security and Ethical Hacking Courses.

Cloud Computing Introduction to Ethical Hacking
Denial of Service Hacking Mobile Platforms
Cryptography Hacking Web Servers
Session Hijacking Scanning Networks
Social Engineering Malware Threats
Footprinting and Reconnaissance SQL Injection
Evading IDS, Firewalls and Honeypots Enumeration

Ethical Hacking Course Syllabus: FAQs

Ques. What subjects are needed for ethical hacking?

Ans. Here are some of the topics and skills crucial for Ethical Hacking.

  • Computer Networking
  • Computer Skills
  • Linux
  • Programming
  • Basic Hardware Knowledge
  • Reverse Engineering
  • Cryptography
  • Database.

Ques. What is the syllabus of Certified Ethical Hacker?

Ans. The Certified Ethical Hacker Course is divided into 20 modules. Among them, some of the topics are Introduction to Ethical Hacking, Footprinting and Reconnaissance, Scanning Networks

Enumeration, System Hacking, Malware Threats, Sniffing, Social Engineering and many more.

Ques. What are the basic steps of hacking?

Ans. The basic steps of Ethical Hacking are as follows:-

  • Reconnaissance 
  • Scanning 
  • Gaining Access 
  • Maintaining Access
  • Clearing Track.

Ques. What do hackers study in college?

Ans. One can join certification courses or undergraduate and postgraduate courses in Ethical Hacking. Ethical Hacking at bachelor's and master's degree are specialisation covered under Cyber Security, Networking, CSE and Information Technology. Hacking courses at Colleges cover 3 major topics namely Ethical Hacking, Website Hacking & Security and Mobile & Wireless Security.

Ques. Can I learn ethical hacking on my own?

Ans. Yes, you can learn ethical hacking on your own. The topics which you need to cover includes-

  • Security Concepts, Technologies Computer Skills
  • ARP, DHCP, NAT, DNS and Subnetting
  • VLANs, MAC addressing, IPv4, IPv6 and Public v Private IP
  • Routers and Switches, OSI model Virtualization
  • Databases
  • Digital Forensics using TCP/IP Wireshark or Tcpdump
  • Cryptography
  • Web Applications Scripting
  • Linux
  • Wireless communication technologies.

Ques. What is the syllabus of basic ethical hacking?

Ans. For beginners in Ethical Hacking, learning about the Basics of Information Security is the most important thing. Apart from these, some other topics that you can learn include-

  • Computer hardware and basics
  • Basics of Operating systems and Windows/ linux
  • Computer Networking and security
  • Programming (Python/ java/ c)
  • Web technology
  • Basics of servers.

Ques. What is the syllabus of ethical hacking, and how can I learn it online?

Ans. The syllabus for Ethical Hacking is vast and related to Cyber Security. You can learn it through various online courses by Udemy, Coursera, Simplilearn and many more. In order to learn ethical hacking you must follow the following steps-

  • Research and prepare Resources.
  • Learn the fundamentals of Linux, Windows, Web Applications, Python, Server, Networking and more. 
  • Learn Ethical Hacking Tools such as Metasploit, Nmap, Burp suite, Wappalyzer, Cain and Abel, etc.
  • Learn about Vulnerable Machines such as OverTheWire, DVWA, PicoCTF, VulnHub, etc.

Ques. How do I start ethical hacking?

Ans. To start ethical hacking, you need to know the basics and fundamentals that are related to Ethical Hacking. In order to learn them, you can pursue an Ethical Hacking Course and get Certified. One of such certifications is Certified Ethical Hacker by Ec-Council and is recognised globally.

Ques. What is the first thing to learn in ethical hacking?

Ans. The first and foremost thing to learn ethical hacking is to learn the basics and fundamentals of ethical hacking. You can start from Basics of Information Security.

Ques. What is the CEH (Certified Ethical Hacker) course?

Ans. CEH stands for Certified Ethical Hacker and is a certification provided by Ec-Council. It is recognised globally and is one of the most sought after Ethical Hacking certification programs. It assesses one's strong knowledge in the field of hacking.

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