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The Certified Ethical Hacker exam is a challenging test that requires significant knowledge and experience in the field of ethical hacking. With it, you can hope to obtain various mid-and high-level positions in the cybersecurity field, such as Security Analyst, Security Administrator, Penetration Tester, Security Manager, and more.
The CEH exam requires you to have some fundamental skills and knowledge to be successful. This includes understanding common hacking techniques, how to use various tools to find vulnerabilities, and being able to write simple programs.
In this blog post, we will explain the details of the CEH exam, offer insight into how practice tests can help you pass the exam with a higher score, and provide you with some sample questions so you can get a feel for the types of questions that will be asked.
What is the CEH exam?
The CEH exam is a four-hour, 125-question test that covers a wide range of topics related to ethical hacking. There are twenty modules in the exam, each covering a different topic. The topics covered in the exam are as follows:
- Introduction to ethical hacking
- Footprinting and reconnaissance
- Scanning networks
- Enumeration
- Vulnerability analysis
- System hacking
- Malware threats
- Sniffing
- Social engineering
- Denial-of-service
- Session hijacking
- Evading IDS, firewalls, and honeypots
- Hacking web servers
- Hacking web applications
- SQL injection
- Hacking wireless networks
- Hacking mobile platforms
- IoT hacking
- Cloud computing
- Cryptography
The questions you will answer are multiple-choice. The passing score of the exam varies depending on the form of the exam you take, but it is generally between 60-85%.
Is it only theoretical questions?
The CEH exam only tests your theoretical knowledge. It is important to note that you will NOT be hacking any systems during the exam. The questions are designed to test your understanding of various hacking concepts, tools, and techniques.
However, if you’re interested in obtaining the CEH Master credential, you will be required to complete a practical exam in addition to the theoretical exam. The practical exam is six hours long and consists of 20 practical challenges.
The topic of this article is only the theoretical exam, so we will not be covering the practical exam in detail.
What are the benefits of taking the CEH exam?
There are many benefits to taking the CEH exam and becoming certified. Here are some of the most notable benefits:
- The CEH credential is globally recognized and is one of the most popular ethical hacking certifications.
- It can help you land a job in the cybersecurity field or advance your career.
- The average salary for CEH holders is around $95,000 per year.
- You will gain a deeper understanding of ethical hacking concepts, tools, and techniques.
- You will be able to identify vulnerabilities in systems and networks.
Study material
There are multiple routes you can take to study for the CEH exam. The most popular option is to take an official training course from the EC-Council or an EC-Council approved partner, like The i4 Group. The pros of this option are that you will receive official study material, get access to practice exams, and have the ability to ask questions to an instructor.
The downside of this option is that it can be quite expensive.
Another route is to purchase a study guide and practice tests from a third-party provider or take a course from a third-party provider. Plenty of options exist, and the prices can vary widely. If you look around, you can find some good deals, but make sure you do your research to ensure you’re getting quality material.
The third and possibly the least recommended option is to find free study material online. Although this option can save you some money, it is important to be aware that the quality of free study materials can vary significantly.
Among the study material you acquire, whether for a price or not, you should make sure you have access to practice tests. These are vital in helping you prepare for the actual exam.
How important are practice tests?
Practice tests provide an excellent way to study for the CEH exam. By taking a practice test, you can get an idea of what types of questions will be asked on the actual exam and gauge your understanding of the material. Additionally, by taking multiple practice tests, you can identify which topics you need to focus on studying more.
One important caveat is that not all practice tests are created equal. Some providers create their questions based on past CEH exam questions, while others make up their own questions. It is important to make sure you’re using quality practice tests to be confident you’re studying the right material.
The practice tests you find online for free may not be of the same quality as the ones you would get from a paid provider. Stay away from ad-filled websites that try to get you to take a “free CEH practice test” but only end up providing you with a few questions. These websites are not likely to be reputable and may even contain malware.
Make sure that you ask people who have already taken the CEH exam for recommendations on practice tests. Study groups are also a great resource for finding quality practice tests.
When is the right time to start doing practice tests?
You don’t want to start doing practice tests too early, as you’ll just be wasting time taking tests on the material you haven’t covered yet. However, you also don’t want to wait until the last minute, as this will leave you little time to review your results and study any topics you need to brush up on.
A good rule of thumb is to start doing practice tests when you’re about halfway through your studies. This will give you enough time to cover most of the material and not feel completely lost when taking the tests.
Sample questions
Now that we’ve gone over the importance of practice tests, let’s look at some sample questions. These exam question examples should give you an idea of the type of material covered on the CEH exam.
Question #1
What is the maximum length of an SSID?
- A: 64 characters
- B: 32 characters
- C: 8 characters
- D: 16 characters
SSID stands for Service Set Identifier. The maximum length of an SSID is 32 characters. This is basic network security knowledge that you will need to know for the CEH exam.
Question #2
In which phase of a penetration test can you perform scanning?
- A: Pre-attack
- B: Reconnaissance
- C: During an attack
- D: Post-attack
Every penetration test has a certain methodology that must be followed. The scanning phase is part of the pre-attack phase (after the reconnaissance phase) before any actual attacks are carried out. It serves to gather information about the target system.
Question #3
EliteWrap is a program that does what?
- A: Provides proxy services for obfuscating source IPs
- B: Binds Trojans to legitimate files for later exploitation
- C: Easily ports code between different operating systems
- D: Provides encrypted tunneling between hosts
As mentioned before, extensive knowledge of ethical hacking tools is required for the CEH exam. EliteWrap is a program that binds Trojans to legitimate files for later exploitation. This question tests your knowledge of common ethical hacking tools and their purposes.
Question #4
Which of the following is NOT a type of DoS or DDoS attack?
- A: SYN flood
- B: Smurf attack
- C: Teardrop attack
- D: Spoofing attack
A DoS, or Denial of Service, attack is an attempt to make a system unavailable to its intended users. There are many different types of DoS attacks, but the Spoofing attack is not one of them.
Spoofing actually refers to the act of disguising oneself as another user or system. This can be done for many different reasons, but it is not a type of DoS attack.
Question #5
Which of the following is NOT a type of session hijacking?
- A: IP spoofing
- B: DNS poisoning
- C: ARP poisoning
- D: MAC flooding
Session hijacking is the act of taking over an active session between two parties. The correct answer to this question is MAC flooding. MAC flooding is a DoS attack that works by flooding a network with bogus MAC addresses.
As you can see, the practice exam questions can range from very basic to quite advanced. This is why it’s important to have a solid understanding of all aspects of ethical hacking before taking the real exam.
Conclusion
The CEH certification can be a valuable asset for any ethical hacker. It can open up new job opportunities and help you further your career. However, the exam is not to be taken lightly. It consists of many different topics (20 different modules!), and you will need to have a strong understanding of all of them to pass.
One of the best ways to prepare for the exam is to do practice tests as you learn. This will help you identify any areas you need to brush up on and give you a better idea of what to expect on the actual exam.
The practice questions we’ve mentioned in this article should give you an (extremely brief) overview of the type of material covered on the CEH exam. Remember, the questions cover a wide range of topics, so it’s important to familiarize yourself with as much information as possible before taking the exam.
The I4 Group offers CEH training courses that will help you prepare for the exam and give you the skills you need to be a successful ethical hacker. We are an EC-Council partner and our courses are designed by industry experts that include up-to-date information on all 20 modules of the exam. Contact us today to learn more!
