Updated in May 2025.
This course now features Coursera Coach! A smarter way to learn with interactive, real-time conversations that help you test your knowledge, challenge assumptions, and deepen your understanding as you progress through the course. This hands-on course guides you through the real-world practice of penetration testing, providing an end-to-end look at what it takes to become a skilled ethical hacker. You'll learn the full lifecycle of a pentest—from the initial client engagement and legal preparations to exploitation, documentation, and final reporting. Whether you're an aspiring pentester or a blue teamer looking to understand offense better, this course has you covered. The journey begins with a foundational understanding of what makes a good pentester, including essential pre-engagement processes like authorization, NDAs, and statements of work. You'll explore how to properly set scope, gather requirements, and ensure ethical and legal compliance before an assessment even begins. From there, the course shifts into the technical nitty-gritty. You'll dive into various stages of assessment—recon, vulnerability scanning, exploitation, maintaining access, and covering tracks—using tools like Nmap, Nessus, BurpSuite, and Dradis. You'll also explore different pentesting platforms like Kali, Parrot, and Black Arch, ensuring you're equipped with the right tools and knowledge for the job. This course is perfect for cybersecurity beginners, junior red teamers, and even blue team professionals seeking to understand offensive tactics. No advanced prerequisites are needed, but familiarity with basic IT concepts will be helpful. The difficulty level is beginner to intermediate, with a strong focus on real-world application.
