Introduction

Cybersecurity threats are growing at an unprecedented rate, making ethical hacking and penetration testing essential skills for security professionals. Ethical hackers help organizations identify vulnerabilities in their systems, networks, and applications before malicious hackers can exploit them. This Ethical Hacking and Penetration Testing Training Course provides hands-on training in cybersecurity methodologies, tools, and techniques used to assess and secure IT environments. Participants will learn how to conduct penetration testing, identify security weaknesses, and apply countermeasures to protect against cyber threats.

The course is designed to align with industry-recognized security certifications such as Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH), Offensive Security Certified Professional (OSCP), and GIAC Penetration Tester (GPEN).

Objectives

By the end of this course, participants will:

• Understand the fundamentals of ethical hacking and penetration testing
• Learn hacking methodologies and tools used by professional ethical hackers
• Gain hands-on experience with network scanning, exploitation, and post-exploitation techniques
• Understand web application vulnerabilities such as SQL Injection, Cross-Site Scripting (XSS), and CSRF
• Master wireless network security and Wi-Fi penetration testing
• Learn social engineering techniques and how to mitigate them
• Perform privilege escalation and lateral movement in compromised systems
• Understand reporting and legal considerations in penetration testing
• Learn how to implement defensive security strategies to mitigate cyber threats

Who Should Attend?

This course is ideal for:

• Cybersecurity professionals looking to expand their offensive security skills
• Penetration testers and red team members who want structured, hands-on training
• IT administrators, network engineers, and security analysts responsible for system security
• Software developers looking to build more secure applications
• Ethical hackers aiming to pursue certifications like CEH, OSCP, or GPEN
• Law enforcement and government agencies involved in cybersecurity investigations
• Anyone interested in learning offensive security techniques and ethical hacking methodologies

Course Outline

Day 1: Introduction to Ethical Hacking & Reconnaissance

Fundamentals of Ethical Hacking

• What is ethical hacking, and why is it important?
• Understanding the hacker mindset and the cyber kill chain
• Overview of penetration testing methodologies (PTES, OWASP, NIST)
• Legal and ethical considerations: Hacking laws, compliance, and responsible disclosure

Reconnaissance & Information Gathering

• Passive vs. active reconnaissance
• OSINT (Open-Source Intelligence) techniques
• Whois, DNS enumeration, and footprinting
• Google Dorking and Shodan for security reconnaissance
• Social engineering reconnaissance techniques

Hands-on Practice

• Using Maltego for information gathering
• Performing DNS enumeration and subdomain discovery
• Identifying leaked credentials using Have I Been Pwned?

Day 2: Scanning, Enumeration, and Vulnerability Analysis

Network Scanning & Enumeration

• Understanding network scanning tools and techniques
• Nmap and Zenmap for network scanning
• Identifying live hosts, open ports, and services
• Banner grabbing and fingerprinting

Vulnerability Assessment & Exploitation Basics

• Introduction to vulnerability scanning tools (Nessus, OpenVAS, Nikto)
• Identifying Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE)
• Introduction to Metasploit Framework (MSF)
• Exploiting known vulnerabilities

Hands-on Practice

• Performing an Nmap scan and analyzing network results
• Running Nessus or OpenVAS to detect system vulnerabilities
• Exploiting a known vulnerability using Metasploit

Day 3: Gaining Access – Exploitation Techniques

System Hacking & Privilege Escalation

• Password cracking techniques (John the Ripper, Hashcat)
• Exploiting weak passwords and authentication mechanisms
• Privilege escalation in Windows and Linux environments
• Kernel exploits and misconfigurations

Web Application Hacking

• Introduction to OWASP Top 10 Web Vulnerabilities
• SQL Injection (SQLi) and database exploitation
• Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) attacks and prevention
• Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) attacks

Hands-on Practice

• Exploiting SQL Injection using SQLMap
• Identifying and exploiting XSS vulnerabilities
• Performing privilege escalation in a lab environment

Day 4: Advanced Hacking Techniques & Post-Exploitation

Wireless Hacking & Network Exploitation

• Basics of Wi-Fi security and encryption protocols
• Cracking WEP, WPA, and WPA2 using Aircrack-ng
• Evil Twin attacks and rogue access points
• Man-in-the-Middle (MitM) attacks using Ettercap

Post-Exploitation Techniques

• Maintaining access and persistence techniques
• Credential dumping and lateral movement
• Data exfiltration and covering tracks
• Command and control (C2) frameworks (Cobalt Strike, Empire, Metasploit)

Hands-on Practice

• Capturing and cracking Wi-Fi passwords
• Conducting a Man-in-the-Middle attack on a local network
• Deploying a backdoor for persistent access

Day 5: Social Engineering, Security Hardening & Reporting

Social Engineering Attacks

• Phishing techniques and attack vectors
• Creating malicious payloads using SET (Social Engineering Toolkit)
• USB drop attacks and baiting techniques
• Voice phishing and impersonation attacks

Defensive Security & Countermeasures

• Implementing Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS) and Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS)
• Hardening operating systems and network defenses
• Preventing and mitigating phishing and social engineering attacks
• Security best practices for developers and IT administrators

Penetration Testing Reports & Responsible Disclosure

• Writing professional penetration testing reports
• Communicating findings to executives and IT teams
• Best practices for responsible vulnerability disclosure

Hands-on Practice

• Setting up and launching a phishing attack simulation
• Hardening a Linux or Windows system against common attacks
• Writing a penetration test report for a simulated engagement