8 Free Ethical Hacking Courses on SWAYAM, EdX, Cisco, and More

In a field as critical and fast-evolving as cybersecurity, ethical hacking is the ultimate career launchpad. These professionals, often called “white-hat hackers,” are the digital good guys who legally break into systems to fix vulnerabilities before malicious attackers can exploit them.

The good news is that you don’t need a massive budget to start learning these in-demand skills. Major educational platforms and tech companies now offer free, high-quality courses that blend academic rigour with hands-on lab practice.

Here are 8 unique, free ethical hacking and penetration testing courses and resources on SWAYAM, EdX, Cisco, and more, categorized by their learning style.

The Academic and Industry-Standard Pathway

These courses provide a structured curriculum backed by major institutions, perfect for a strong theoretical foundation.

1. NPTEL Ethical Hacking (SWAYAM)

This is an in-depth, semester-long course from a top Indian institution.

• Provider: IIT Kharagpur via the SWAYAM platform.
• Unique Feature: Offers a deep, academic treatment of the subject, starting with networking and cryptography fundamentals before moving to hacking. It’s an ideal choice if you want the structure of a university course.
• Focus Areas: Networking, IP protocols, Cryptography, hands-on demonstrations with tools like Nmap, Wireshark, and Metasploit.
• Cost/Certification: Free to enroll and audit the course content; a final certification exam is available for a nominal fee.

2. Cisco Networking Academy – Ethical Hacker

A highly practical, self-paced course designed to teach the “attacker’s mindset.”

• Provider: Cisco Networking Academy.
• Unique Feature: Focuses on a gamified narrative throughout the 70-hour curriculum, guiding students through scoping, executing, and reporting on vulnerability assessments using Kali Linux labs in a safe environment.
• Focus Areas: Reconnaissance, scanning, exploitation, and post-exploitation. This course is strongly aligned with offensive security career roles.
• Cost/Certification: Completely free.

The Hands-On, Practical Pathway

These options prioritize practical skills, labs, and interactive environments over long video lectures, making them perfect for learning by doing.

3. Ethical Hacking Essentials (EC-Council via EdX)

A foundational course from the organization behind the highly respected Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH) certification.

• Provider: EC-Council via the edX platform.
• Unique Feature: This course is a direct entry point into the official EC-Council training track. While paid options are available, auditing the Ethical Hacking Essentials (EHE) content for free gives you a structured overview of the material required for entry-level offensive security.
• Focus Areas: Network defense, vulnerability testing, risk management, and the basics of ethical hacking.
• Cost/Certification: Free to audit the course materials. Certification requires payment.

4. TryHackMe: Pre-Security & Cyber Security 101 Paths

A leader in hands-on cybersecurity training, offering engaging, gamified learning.

• Provider: TryHackMe.
• Unique Feature: This platform offers free “rooms” (virtual machines/labs) and foundational learning paths like ‘Pre-Security.’ You learn by solving objective-based tasks directly in your browser, making it the most hands-on, low-friction entry point available.
• Focus Areas: Linux fundamentals, networking, web basics, and initial security concepts necessary before starting pentesting.
• Cost/Certification: Many fundamental learning “rooms” and paths are free. Premium content requires a subscription.

5. IBM Ethical Hacking with Open Source Tools (Coursera)

Focuses on the toolset used by nearly every professional pentester.

• Provider: IBM via the Coursera platform.
• Unique Feature: The curriculum is centered on mastering essential, open-source penetration testing tools like Kali Linux, Metasploit, Wireshark, and OpenVAS. It’s highly practical and project-based.
• Focus Areas: Hands-on experience with information gathering, vulnerability analysis, and simulated attacks using the Metasploit framework.
• Cost/Certification: Free to audit the course materials. Certification requires a subscription/payment.

The Specialized Skill-Building Pathway

These resources focus on niche areas of ethical hacking or prerequisite skills essential for advancing in the field.

6. Cybrary – Penetration Testing and Ethical Hacking Path (Foundations)

A trusted platform for security professionals, offering a wealth of free foundational content.

• Provider: Cybrary.
• Unique Feature: Provides access to introductory virtual labs and short, focused courses in its free tier. It allows users to quickly build up specific skills, such as using Burp Suite for web application testing or practicing password attacks.
• Focus Areas: Core concepts of pentesting methodology, common hacking tools, and web-app security basics.
• Cost/Certification: Free foundational courses and introductory labs. Advanced content and Career Paths require a paid subscription.

7. TCM Security: Free Penetration Testing Resources

From the creator of the highly-rated Practical Ethical Hacking course, these are high-value, free modules.

• Provider: TCM Security Academy.
• Unique Feature: Offers several foundational modules for free, including Linux for Hackers and OSINT Fundamentals. These are critical prerequisite skills often skimmed in other courses, providing a deeper dive into the necessary building blocks for ethical hacking.
• Focus Areas: Operating System knowledge (Linux/Kali), Open Source Intelligence (OSINT), and foundational programming.
• Cost/Certification: Free access to foundational courses.

8. Palo Alto Networks: Fundamentals of Network Security

Hacking relies entirely on network knowledge; this vendor-neutral course builds that essential core skill.

• Provider: Palo Alto Networks (via their Beacon education platform).
• Unique Feature: While not explicitly an “ethical hacking” course, understanding network security fundamentals is a non-negotiable prerequisite. This vendor-neutral course provides a professional-level understanding of network operations, protocols (like DNS), and defense technologies (e.g., firewalls, IDS/IPS), giving you the necessary “blue team” knowledge to attack systems ethically.
• Focus Areas: Enterprise networks, networking devices, routing protocols, and network security technologies.
• Cost/Certification: Completely free.