You can see it againUnder pressure people bring back shapes and positions long after the wording has gone.
Picture superiority · Shepard 1967, Standing 1973
EC-COUNCILEC-Council Computer Hacking Forensic Investigator
The EC-Council Computer Hacking Forensic Investigator (CHFI) certification validates your ability to conduct effective digital forensics investigations and bring your organization to a state of forensic readiness. This hands-on program immerses you in over 68 labs covering cloud, mobile, IoT, and malware forensics, preparing you to acquire, preserve, and analyze digital evidence that stands up in court. Earning CHFI demonstrates the methodological expertise needed to prosecute cybercriminals and limit organizational liability.
Exam formatMultiple choice
DeliveryPearson VUE
Free questions752
Content last reviewed 30 July 2026 · Up to date
The certification
What EC-Council Computer Hacking Forensic Investigator proves, and what it asks of you
What this certification covers, who it is written for, and what the exam itself looks like on the day.
7domains
15objectives
154concepts
US $499exam fee
What it is
What this certification is
What it validates, who it is written for, and the experience it assumes.
About this certification
EC-Council's Computer Hacking Forensic Investigator (CHFI) program prepares cybersecurity professionals with the knowledge and skills to perform effective digital forensics investigations and bring their organization into a state of forensic readiness. This includes establishing the forensics process, lab and evidence handling procedures, as well as the investigation procedures required to validate and triage incidents and point incident response teams in the right direction.
The program goes beyond traditional hardware and memory forensics, covering current topics such as cloud forensics, mobile and IoT forensics, investigating web application attacks, and malware forensics. Students learn a methodological approach to computer forensics—including searching and seizing, chain-of-custody, acquisition, preservation, analysis, and reporting of digital evidence—ensuring evidence is admissible in court. With over 68 hands-on labs, CHFI provides credible, globally recognized professional knowledge essential for a successful digital forensics and DFIR career.
Who it’s for
The CHFI certification is designed for cybersecurity professionals who perform or aspire to perform digital forensics investigations, including forensic analysts, incident responders, law enforcement personnel, and IT security administrators. It is ideal for those who need to acquire and manage evidence across various operating environments and understand the legal procedures required to preserve evidence for prosecution. Candidates typically have a background in IT or cybersecurity and are looking to deepen their expertise in digital forensics, DFIR, and evidence handling. The program is also valuable for professionals seeking to enhance their employability in roles that require credible forensic investigation skills.
Recommended experience
EC-Council recommends that candidates have a solid foundation in IT and cybersecurity, with familiarity in operating systems, networking, and basic security concepts. Hands-on experience in incident response or forensic investigation is beneficial. Understanding of computer operating systems (Windows, Linux, macOS); Familiarity with networking concepts and protocols; Basic knowledge of cybersecurity principles and incident response; Experience with forensic tools or digital evidence handling is advantageous
The syllabus
What you’ll learn
Every domain and objective EC-Council measures, with the weight they carry on the exam.
The official EC-Council exam outline · checked 30 July 2026 · See the source
Forensic Fundamentals and Process
- Computer Forensics in Today's World
- Computer Forensics Investigation Process
Storage Media, Acquisition and Anti-Forensics
- Understanding Hard Disks and File Systems
- Data Acquisition and Duplication
- Defeating Anti-Forensics Techniques
Operating System Forensics
- Windows Forensics
- Linux and Mac Forensics
Network and Malware Forensics
- Network Forensics
- Malware Forensics
Web and Dark Web Forensics
- Investigating Web Attacks
- Dark Web Forensics
Cloud and Communication Forensics
- Cloud Forensics
- Email and Social Media Forensics
Mobile and IoT Forensics
- Mobile Forensics
- IoT Forensics
On the day
The exam itself
Everything EC-Council publishes about sitting it, and nothing we inferred.
Prerequisites
Completion of an official EC-Council CHFI training course is strongly recommended.
CertificationEC-Council Computer Hacking Forensic Investigator
Exam formatMultiple choice
DeliveryPearson VUE
LanguagesEnglish
PricingUS $499
After you pass
Where this credential goes next
The path EC-Council lays out, how the credential is kept, and where to book.
Step-by-step path to EC-Council Computer Hacking Forensic Investigator
PrerequisiteCompletion of an official EC-Council CHFI training course is strongly recommended.
Credential earnedEC-Council Computer Hacking Forensic Investigator Certification Renewal and maintenance
EC-Council certifications require renewal through continuing education credits. CHFI holders must earn and submit continuing education credits to maintain their certification. Stay current with the latest technologies and maintain your certification.
Learn more about renewal requirements Lifecycle status
This certification is currently active and available. EC-Council maintains this certification to validate current skills and industry relevance.
Exam status: ActiveMaintained by EC-Council
Exam registration
Register for the exam through Pearson VUE, EC-Council’s authorized testing partner.
Schedule your examVisit the official EC-Council certification page for exam policies and requirements.
View the official pageYour coach
And when you are serious, your coach Pip takes over
Your coach in the app reads what you have answered with the book closed and tells you one thing to do tonight. It will not count an answer you gave with the page open, and it will tell you when you are not ready.
See how the coach worksBefore you book
Questions people ask
How does CHFI relate to the Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH) certification?
CHFI focuses on digital forensics and investigation, while CEH focuses on ethical hacking and penetration testing. They are separate certifications; CHFI is not a prerequisite for CEH, and vice versa. However, they complement each other for professionals in incident response and cybersecurity.
Is there a hands-on lab component in the CHFI exam?
The CHFI training program includes over 68 hands-on labs where students work on crafted evidence files and use tools employed by top digital forensics professionals. The exam itself is knowledge-based, but the labs prepare you for practical application.
What job roles does the CHFI credential map to?
CHFI is designed for professionals in digital forensics and DFIR careers, including forensic analysts, incident responders, law enforcement officers, and IT security administrators who need to investigate cybercrimes and handle digital evidence.
Can I recertify by passing a different EC-Council exam?
EC-Council certifications require renewal through continuing education credits. Passing a higher-level EC-Council exam may contribute to your continuing education requirements, but you should check the specific renewal policy for CHFI.
Are there any regional restrictions for taking the CHFI exam?
EC-Council certifications are available in over 170 countries, and the CHFI exam can be taken online or at Pearson VUE test centers. Regional availability may vary, so check with your local authorized testing center.
Information freshness · Content last reviewed on 2026-07-30 Up to date
Practice free questions 752 questions, free, no account needed.
The curriculum
The whole exam, mapped and written
Every domain, every objective, and every concept EC-Council measures — each one written out.
7domains
15objectives
154concepts
157free pages
The domains, and what sits inside them
Every objective below is a page you can open and practise now, without an account.
The official EC-Council exam outline · checked 30 July 2026 · See the source
1Forensic Fundamentals and Process104 questions
2Storage Media, Acquisition and Anti-Forensics136 questions
3Operating System Forensics90 questions
4Network and Malware Forensics112 questions
5Web and Dark Web Forensics97 questions
6Cloud and Communication Forensics108 questions
7Mobile and IoT Forensics105 questions
Not a table of contents
Every line on this map already opens
In front of every objective the practice pages are already there, free and without an account. This is one objective, opened.
Computer Forensics in Today's World11 pagesOpen →
Free in front of it
53 questions on this objective, five to a page. Every range above is a real page, open now, with no account.
Reading the map is not the same as knowing the ground
The curriculum tells you what is on the exam. Proving you know it is a different job — and it is the one the closed-book run does.
Free questions
752 questions. No account, no card.
The whole bank is open. 5 questions to a page, every answer explained, and a discussion thread on each one.
752questions
157pages
15objectives
Freealways
Browse by domain
Every objective, and every page range, is a link — so you can pick up exactly where you left off.
1Forensic Fundamentals and Process104 questions
2Storage Media, Acquisition and Anti-Forensics136 questions
3Operating System Forensics90 questions
4Network and Malware Forensics112 questions
5Web and Dark Web Forensics97 questions
6Cloud and Communication Forensics108 questions
7Mobile and IoT Forensics105 questions
What a practice page gives you
1Five to a page
Short enough to finish, long enough to matter.
2Every answer explained
Not only which one is right — why the others are wrong.
3A discussion on each
Ask, answer, and vote. Every question has its own thread.
A question, and the idea behind it
Every question comes from a concept
These are not trivia. Each one is written against a concept in the book, so when you get one wrong there is somewhere to go and find out why.
The visual book
See it once. Carry it into the exam.
The pages shown here come from our AI-900 book — an example of how each concept is written in plain language and, where the idea needs one, drawn as a full page you can take in at a glance.
154concepts
752free questions
Why a picture, and not another paragraph
Three reasons, and each one is a real finding rather than a slogan.
You can see it againThe whole idea at onceWhere it starts, what happens in the middle, what comes out, and the mistake to avoid.
Multimedia principle · MayerThe look-alikes sit togetherThe pairs the exam tests are drawn side by side, so the difference is seen, not told.
Dual coding · PaivioWhat one page is made of
You are never asked to read a poster here — only to see how one is built. After that, every other page is legible at a glance.
1A numbered strip on top
The idea as a sequence, followed with a finger before a word is read.
2Panels for the parts
What it is, how the machine learns it, when it is the right tool.
3The trap, framed
The distinction the exam tests, given its own box instead of buried in prose.
4One line at the bottom
The sentence to carry into the exam room.
Open book, on purpose
Answer it with the picture beside you
This is the part that teaches. The illustration and the written explanation stay where they are while you work, so a scenario stops being a memory test and becomes something you can simply look at.
It teaches · it does not count
A smartphone uses AI to unlock when the owner looks at the camera. Which AI capability is being used?
AImage classification
BFacial recognition
COptical character recognition
DObject detection
Look at the five steps. Detect finds a face, align straightens it, encode turns it into numbers, search compares it with a stored face, and decide answers one question: is this the same person? Classification would only say “a face”. Detection would only draw a box. Neither decides whose.
Then the page shuts, and it starts counting
The same questions come back with the book closed — that run is the one that counts. After it, your coach picks one thing for tonight, sized to the time you have, and brings pages back before you lose them.
Testing effect · Roediger & Karpicke 2006 · spacing effect · Cepeda et al. 2006
Official resources
Straight from EC-Council
Where the exam is defined, scheduled and scored.
1official link
154concepts mapped
The source
EC-Council’s own pages
We link to them rather than repeat them, so nothing here goes stale behind them.
Checked against the source
Every objective on the official EC-Council outline already has questions here
We build from the official skills outline, not from a summary of it — 15 objectives, 154 concepts written under them, and free questions against every one. When EC-Council changes the outline, this page changes with it.
15objectives on the outline→154concepts written→752free questions
An official page tells you what will be asked. It cannot tell you what you will get right.
That is the only question worth answering the night before, and no link answers it. You answer it by taking the questions with the book closed, and seeing what comes back.