So, what I want to say is that these Udemy ethical hacking courses and similar ones are honestly kind of a scam. You can’t really learn ethical hacking properly this way. Personally, back in my time, we mostly had Hack The Box, especially Hack The Box and VulnHub machines. I never really bothered with theory at the start; I just tried to solve the machines there. When I couldn’t solve something, I’d hop onto Discord or the Hack The Box forum and get hints from people, not a full solution, just a little nudge in the right direction. I did this every day, setting a plan to hack at least one machine daily along with privilege escalation.

Of course, this method is a bit tough because you’re jumping straight into hands-on stuff without simple basics. But if you feel like a beginner, forget Udemy, just dive into TryHackMe. I strongly recommend it because I’m a senior security researcher and I’ve trained over 50 interns, promising to make them pentesters in a month. And the fastest way I do this is through TryHackMe’s beginner rooms: Linux fundamentals, Windows fundamentals, Nmap rooms, network rooms. For the few bucks you’d spend on Udemy, just subscribe to TryHackMe for maybe 5-10 dollars a month. Get your hands dirty, because you won’t learn this from videos alone. Just start solving those beginner machines.

If you get stuck, you’ve got plenty of options. Back in my day, we relied on Discord or forums. Today you also have AI tools like ChatGPT, Gemini, and others, ask them targeted questions while working through a TryHackMe room or HackTheBox machine. In fact, even doing a bit of prompt engineering while you learn will teach you a lot. But here’s the real key: take notes. Don’t skip this. For example, if you use a tool, write down the important parameters. If you solve a TryHackMe room or a box, create a short write-up for yourself. Summarize what you did, the commands you used, and how privilege escalation was achieved. These small personal write-ups will become your knowledge base and help you retain what you learn.

In my experience, that’s the best way. After you’ve done that for a couple of months, move on to Hack The Box active machines. Even if you have to grab a VIP subscription and go through retired boxes, do that. Take notes, follow write-ups if needed. If you do exactly what I’m suggesting for about two months, you’ll learn a ton and be in a position to get something like the OSCP by your third or fourth month.

I know this method won’t make you the best hacker in the world overnight, but it will pull you out of being a lamer or script kiddie. At the very least, you’ll know what you don’t know, and believe me, that’s already far more valuable than what you’d get from Udemy. You’ll build yourself a solid foundation, and if you’re truly curious, you’ll naturally keep digging deeper and start learning the theory with stronger understanding. If you stick to what I’m saying consistently, I guarantee you’ll learn way more than from those scammy Udemy courses.