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Quest Training

Penetration Testing & Ethical Hacking Training Course

Teaches how to scope authorized tests, discover and exploit vulnerabilities in systems and applications, and report findings that help reduce cyber exposure.

CYIS · Cybersecurity & Information SecurityAll Levels#2691ClassroomEnglish , Arabic
Duration
5 Days
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Free substitution at any time · 30+ days' notice: full refund minus 10%. Cancellation policy

Sectors:Information Technology & CybersecurityCategories:Cybersecurity & Information Security

Course Overview

Penetration testing and ethical hacking are essential components of modern cybersecurity strategies, enabling organizations to identify security weaknesses, evaluate defensive capabilities, and reduce exposure to cyber threats before vulnerabilities are exploited by malicious actors. As organizations increasingly depend on interconnected systems, cloud environments, digital platforms, and business-critical applications, the ability to assess security from an attacker's perspective has become a valuable capability for protecting information assets and maintaining operational resilience. This training course provides a structured approach to penetration testing and ethical hacking, combining core cybersecurity principles with practical assessment methodologies. Participants explore how authorized security professionals identify potential attack paths, examine vulnerabilities, evaluate weaknesses in system configurations, and assess the effectiveness of existing security controls. The programme emphasizes a systematic, evidence-based approach to security testing within clearly defined legal, ethical, and operational boundaries. The course covers the principal stages of a penetration test, including engagement planning, scoping, reconnaissance, information gathering, vulnerability assessment, controlled exploitation, post-exploitation analysis, and reporting. Participants examine common weaknesses affecting networks, operating systems, web applications, authentication mechanisms, and enterprise environments. They also develop an understanding of how recognized testing methodologies and security frameworks can support consistent assessments, repeatable procedures, and meaningful technical findings. Effective penetration testing requires more than identifying vulnerabilities. Security professionals must determine the significance of each finding, understand its potential business impact, distinguish exploitable weaknesses from lower-priority issues, and recommend practical remediation measures. The programme therefore emphasizes risk-based assessment, accurate documentation, responsible handling of sensitive information, and clear communication of technical results to both cybersecurity specialists and management teams. Through practical exercises, guided laboratory activities, case studies, and a final assessment workshop, participants develop a disciplined approach to conducting and documenting authorized security assessments. The course supports organizations seeking to strengthen internal security testing capabilities, improve vulnerability management, enhance incident preparedness, and establish a more proactive approach to cybersecurity risk reduction.

Learning Objectives

  • Explain the principles, objectives, and professional responsibilities associated with penetration testing and ethical hacking.
  • Distinguish between penetration testing, vulnerability assessment, security auditing, and red-team exercises.
  • Define assessment scope, rules of engagement, authorization requirements, and testing limitations.
  • Apply structured reconnaissance and information-gathering techniques within an approved testing environment.
  • Identify and assess vulnerabilities affecting networks, operating systems, web applications, and enterprise infrastructure.
  • Use appropriate security testing tools to collect evidence, validate findings, and evaluate potential attack paths.
  • Examine common weaknesses in authentication, access control, system configuration, and application security.
  • Perform controlled validation of selected vulnerabilities within explicitly authorized laboratory environments.
  • Evaluate findings according to technical severity, exploitability, business impact, and remediation priority.
  • Prepare clear penetration testing reports containing evidence, risk ratings, and practical recommendations.
  • Recommend remediation and security hardening measures to reduce identified vulnerabilities and improve defensive controls.
  • Develop a structured penetration testing plan that integrates ethical conduct, risk management, documentation, and retesting.

Who Should Attend

This course is designed for professionals involved in cybersecurity, information technology, infrastructure protection, and technical security assessment, including: Cybersecurity Analysts and Information Security Specialists. Penetration Testers and Ethical Hacking Professionals seeking to strengthen their assessment methodology. Network Security Engineers and Network Administrators. Systems Administrators responsible for securing enterprise infrastructure. Security Operations Center (SOC) Analysts. Vulnerability Management and Security Assessment Specialists. Application Security Engineers and Software Security Testers. IT Auditors and Information Security Auditors. Incident Response and Digital Forensics Professionals seeking a stronger understanding of attack techniques. Cloud Security and Infrastructure Security Specialists. Information Security Managers and Cybersecurity Team Leaders. Risk Management and Governance Professionals involved in technical security risk assessment. IT professionals transitioning into cybersecurity and authorized security testing roles. Technical personnel responsible for evaluating and improving organizational security controls.

Learning Outcomes

  • Explain the professional, ethical, and legal foundations of authorized penetration testing.
  • Develop a testing scope and rules of engagement that define objectives, permissions, limitations, and reporting requirements.
  • Conduct structured reconnaissance and information gathering in approved environments.
  • Identify potential vulnerabilities across network services, operating systems, and web applications.
  • Analyze security weaknesses in authentication, authorization, configuration, and access control.
  • Select appropriate testing tools and techniques for defined assessment objectives.
  • Validate selected vulnerabilities through controlled, authorized testing procedures.
  • Interpret technical evidence and distinguish confirmed findings from unverified security hypotheses.
  • Assess vulnerabilities using severity, exploitability, exposure, and business impact.
  • Produce structured technical reports with evidence, risk ratings, and remediation recommendations.
  • Recommend security hardening measures and corrective actions based on identified weaknesses.
  • Plan follow-up testing to verify remediation effectiveness and support continuous security improvement.

Course Outline

Day 1

Penetration Testing Fundamentals, Methodologies & Engagement Planning

  • Understanding cybersecurity threats, attack surfaces, and the role of penetration testing in organizational risk management.
  • Defining ethical hacking, penetration testing, vulnerability assessment, security auditing, and red-team operations.
  • Understanding legal authorization, acceptable testing boundaries, confidentiality, and professional ethical responsibilities.
  • Establishing assessment objectives, scope, exclusions, constraints, and rules of engagement.
  • Identifying target assets, business-critical systems, stakeholders, and operational dependencies.
  • Reviewing recognized penetration testing methodologies and the purpose of structured assessment frameworks.
  • Understanding the stages of a penetration test, from planning and reconnaissance to reporting and retesting.
  • Examining the relationship between penetration testing, vulnerability management, and security governance.
  • Preparing an assessment plan that addresses testing risks, communication procedures, evidence handling, and escalation.
  • Practical Exercise: Develop a penetration testing engagement plan for an authorized sample organization, including scope, objectives, constraints, and deliverables.
Day 2

Reconnaissance, Information Gathering & Network Security Assessment

  • Understanding passive and active reconnaissance and their appropriate use within authorized engagements.
  • Identifying publicly available information that may reveal organizational exposure or security weaknesses.
  • Reviewing domain information, DNS records, publicly exposed services, and other relevant technical indicators.
  • Understanding network architecture, addressing, service discovery, and the relationship between exposed services and attack surfaces.
  • Using approved discovery and scanning tools to identify accessible hosts, network services, and service configurations.
  • Examining common network security weaknesses, including unnecessary services, insecure protocols, and configuration errors.
  • Reviewing network segmentation, firewall rules, and access restrictions from an assessment perspective.
  • Interpreting scan results and distinguishing relevant findings from false positives and environmental noise.
  • Documenting discovered assets, observations, and potential assessment targets without exceeding authorized boundaries.
  • Practical Exercise: Conduct a controlled reconnaissance and network discovery assessment in a dedicated laboratory environment and document the resulting attack surface.
Day 3

Vulnerability Assessment, Controlled Exploitation & System Security

  • Understanding vulnerability classes, security weaknesses, and common causes of exploitable conditions.
  • Reviewing vulnerability assessment methodologies, scanning limitations, and validation requirements.
  • Examining operating system security, patch management, insecure services, and configuration weaknesses.
  • Assessing authentication mechanisms, password policies, session management, and access control design.
  • Understanding privilege management and common pathways through which excessive permissions increase security exposure.
  • Reviewing network service vulnerabilities and the security implications of outdated or improperly configured components.
  • Examining vulnerability severity ratings, including the use and limitations of the Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS).
  • Understanding controlled exploitation as a means of validating security findings within approved test environments.
  • Applying safe laboratory procedures to demonstrate selected vulnerability scenarios without disrupting production systems.
  • Documenting validation evidence, technical limitations, potential impact, and conditions required for exploitation.
  • Practical Exercise: Assess a deliberately vulnerable laboratory system, validate selected findings within the authorized environment, and recommend appropriate corrective measures.
Day 4

Web Application Security, Attack Analysis & Remediation

  • Understanding web application architecture, HTTP communications, APIs, authentication, and session management.
  • Reviewing common web application security risks and the principles behind the OWASP Top 10.
  • Examining input validation weaknesses, injection risks, insecure access controls, and security misconfigurations.
  • Assessing authentication workflows, session handling, password reset mechanisms, and authorization controls.
  • Understanding API security risks, including excessive data exposure, insufficient authorization, and weak input validation.
  • Reviewing secure handling of sensitive information, security headers, transport protection, and error messages.
  • Using approved web security testing tools to inspect requests, responses, application behavior, and potential weaknesses.
  • Differentiating confirmed vulnerabilities from informational observations and false-positive results.
  • Prioritizing remediation according to exposure, technical severity, business consequences, and implementation feasibility.
  • Developing corrective recommendations covering secure configuration, application changes, access controls, and verification.
  • Practical Exercise: Perform a structured security review of a deliberately vulnerable web application in a controlled laboratory and prepare findings with supporting evidence and remediation guidance.
Day 5

Reporting, Risk Prioritization, Retesting & Final Assessment Workshop

  • Structuring a professional penetration testing report for technical teams, management, and relevant stakeholders.
  • Preparing an executive summary that communicates the overall security posture, principal risks, and priority actions.
  • Documenting vulnerabilities with clear descriptions, supporting evidence, affected assets, and reproducible observations.
  • Assigning risk ratings using technical severity, exploitability, exposure, and business impact.
  • Developing remediation recommendations that are practical, prioritized, and aligned with organizational requirements.
  • Establishing corrective action plans with owners, target dates, dependencies, and verification criteria.
  • Understanding retesting procedures and methods for confirming that reported vulnerabilities have been effectively addressed.
  • Reviewing evidence management, confidentiality, secure storage, and appropriate handling of assessment data.
  • Integrating penetration testing results into vulnerability management, security improvement plans, and ongoing risk monitoring.
  • Final Workshop: Conduct a structured assessment of an authorized laboratory environment, consolidate validated findings, prioritize risks, and prepare a professional penetration testing report with an executive summary and remediation roadmap.
  • Group Review: Present findings, explain risk decisions, discuss remediation options, and evaluate the quality of technical evidence.
  • Individual Action Plan: Identify practical steps for applying penetration testing methodologies, reporting standards, and security improvement practices within the participant’s organization.

Upcoming Dates

Selected date

Madrid · 15 – 19 Mar 2027 · Classroom

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ParisScheduled
2 – 6 Nov 2026€6,700—
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RiyadhScheduled
9 – 13 Nov 2026€4,800—
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RomeScheduled
16 – 20 Nov 2026€7,000—
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Sharm El-SheikhScheduled
23 – 27 Nov 2026€5,300€4,770until 2 Nov
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ViennaScheduled
30 Nov – 4 Dec 2026€6,400€5,760until 9 Nov
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SingaporeScheduled
30 Nov – 4 Dec 2026€8,000€7,200until 9 Nov
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AmmanScheduled
6 – 10 Dec 2026€4,000€3,600until 16 Nov
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AmsterdamScheduled
14 – 18 Dec 2026€6,000€5,400until 23 Nov
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BarcelonaScheduled
21 – 25 Dec 2026€6,000€5,400until 30 Nov
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CairoScheduled
28 Dec 2026 – 1 Jan 2027€3,800€3,420until 7 Dec
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CasablancaScheduled
4 – 8 Jan 2027€4,700€4,230until 14 Dec
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DohaScheduled
11 – 15 Jan 2027€4,700€4,230until 21 Dec
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DammamScheduled
11 – 15 Jan 2027€4,800€4,320until 21 Dec
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DubaiScheduled
17 – 21 Jan 2027€4,700€4,230until 28 Dec
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FrankfurtScheduled
25 – 29 Jan 2027€6,200€5,580until 4 Jan
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GenevaScheduled
1 – 5 Feb 2027€7,300€6,570until 11 Jan
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IstanbulScheduled
8 – 12 Feb 2027€5,300€4,770until 18 Jan
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JeddahScheduled
14 – 18 Feb 2027€4,800€4,320until 25 Jan
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Kuala LumpurScheduled
22 – 26 Feb 2027€4,700€4,230until 1 Feb
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LondonScheduled
1 – 5 Mar 2027€5,800€5,220until 8 Feb
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LisbonScheduled
1 – 5 Mar 2027€6,000€5,400until 8 Feb
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MadinahScheduled
8 – 12 Mar 2027€4,800€4,320until 15 Feb
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MadridScheduled
15 – 19 Mar 2027€6,000€5,400until 22 Feb
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MakkahScheduled
22 – 26 Mar 2027€4,800€4,320until 1 Mar
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ManamaScheduled
29 Mar – 2 Apr 2027€5,300€4,770until 8 Mar
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MarbellaScheduled
5 – 9 Apr 2027€6,000€5,400until 15 Mar
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MilanScheduled
12 – 16 Apr 2027€7,000€6,300until 22 Mar
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MunichScheduled
19 – 23 Apr 2027€6,000€5,400until 29 Mar
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MuscatScheduled
19 – 23 Apr 2027€6,300€5,670until 29 Mar
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OnlineScheduled
25 – 29 Apr 2027€2,700€2,430until 5 Apr
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