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 Certified Secure Computer User
The EC-Council Certified Secure Computer User (CSCU) certification equips everyday computer users with the essential knowledge and skills to protect their information assets. It covers a wide range of security threats, from identity theft and phishing to malware and social engineering, and teaches practical countermeasures. This certification is ideal for anyone who uses computers and the internet and wants to stay safe online, making it a valuable complement to any educational or professional path.
Exam formatMultiple Choice
Duration120 minutes
DeliveryEC-Council Exam Portal
Passing score70%
Free questions526
Content last reviewed 30 July 2026 · Up to date
The certification
What EC-Council Certified Secure Computer User 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.
5domains
12objectives
90concepts
What it is
What this certification is
What it validates, who it is written for, and the experience it assumes.
About this certification
The EC-Council Certified Secure Computer User (CSCU) certification is designed to provide individuals with the necessary knowledge and skills to protect their information assets. The program immerses students in an interactive environment where they acquire a fundamental understanding of various computer and network security threats, including identity theft, credit card fraud, online banking phishing scams, viruses and backdoors, email hoaxes, loss of confidential information, hacking attacks, and social engineering.
More importantly, the skills learned in this class help students take the necessary steps to mitigate their security exposure. The curriculum covers practical aspects of networking and security, allowing students to expand their computer skills and develop a foundational understanding of how to secure their digital lives. This certification is an excellent complement to educational offerings in the domain of security and networking, empowering individuals with the confidence to navigate the digital world safely.
Who it’s for
This certification is for any individual who uses computers and surfs the web, social media, email, chats, etc., but is not aware of computer security issues. It is specifically designed for today's computer user, as the internet is quickly moving into a necessity, so is the need to learn how to safely browse, watch videos, send an email, and even work online. Whether you are a student, a professional, or a home user, the CSCU program provides the essential security skills needed to protect your personal and professional information assets from a wide range of cyber threats.
Recommended experience
No specific technical background is required, but a basic familiarity with computers and the internet is recommended. Basic computer literacy, including using a web browser and email; A general understanding of common online activities such as social media and online banking
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
Data and Operating System Security
- Introduction to data security
- Securing operating systems
- Data backup and disaster recovery
Malware and Internet Security
- Malware and antivirus
- Internet security
Social Media and Email Security
- Security on social networking sites
- Securing email communications
Mobile, Cloud, and Network Security
- Securing mobile devices
- Securing the cloud
- Securing network connections
IoT and Remote Work Security
- Securing IoT devices and gaming consoles
- Secure remote work
On the day
The exam itself
Everything EC-Council publishes about sitting it, and nothing we inferred.
Prerequisites
Candidates must be at least 13 years old. If under 13, written consent from a parent or legal guardian and a supporting letter from a nationally accredited institution of higher learning are required.
CertificationEC-Council Certified Secure Computer User
Exam formatMultiple Choice
Duration120 minutes
Questions50 questions
Passing score70%
DeliveryEC-Council Exam Portal
LanguagesEnglish
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 Certified Secure Computer User
PrerequisiteCandidates must be at least 13 years old. If under 13, written consent from a parent or legal guardian and a supporting letter from a nationally accredited institution of higher learning are required.
Credential earnedEC-Council Certified Secure Computer User Certification 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 EC-Council Exam Portal, 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
Is the CSCU certification a prerequisite for any other EC-Council certification?
No, the CSCU certification is not listed as a prerequisite for any other EC-Council certification. It is a standalone certification designed to provide essential security skills for computer users.
How is the CSCU exam delivered?
The CSCU exam is delivered through the EC-Council Exam Portal, which is an online proctoring platform. This allows candidates to take the exam remotely.
What is the retake policy for the CSCU exam?
EC-Council's general retake policy applies to the CSCU exam. Candidates who fail an exam must wait a specified period before retaking it. Specific waiting periods for the CSCU exam are not published on the official exam page.
Are there any hands-on labs or practical components in the CSCU exam?
No, the CSCU exam is a multiple-choice exam. It does not include a hands-on or lab-based component. The training course, however, includes labs and exercises to help students gain practical skills.
What job roles does the CSCU certification map to?
The CSCU certification is designed for any computer user, not a specific job role. It is particularly valuable for individuals in non-technical roles who want to demonstrate their understanding of essential security practices, as well as for students and professionals seeking to complement their existing skills.
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 credits, but specific recertification pathways for the CSCU are not published on the official exam page.
Is the CSCU exam available in languages other than English?
The official exam page lists the exam format and delivery but does not specify available languages. It is recommended to check with your authorized training center for language availability.
Information freshness · Content last reviewed on 2026-07-30 Up to date
Practice free questions 526 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.
5domains
12objectives
90concepts
110free 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
1Data and Operating System Security129 questions
2Malware and Internet Security91 questions
3Social Media and Email Security85 questions
4Mobile, Cloud, and Network Security126 questions
5IoT and Remote Work Security95 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.
Introduction to data security8 pagesOpen →
Free in front of it
36 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
526 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.
526questions
110pages
12objectives
Freealways
Browse by domain
Every objective, and every page range, is a link — so you can pick up exactly where you left off.
1Data and Operating System Security129 questions
2Malware and Internet Security91 questions
3Social Media and Email Security85 questions
4Mobile, Cloud, and Network Security126 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.
90concepts
526free 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.
3official links
90concepts 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 — 12 objectives, 90 concepts written under them, and free questions against every one. When EC-Council changes the outline, this page changes with it.
12objectives on the outline→90concepts written→526free 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.