EC-Council is a private organization that issues certifications related to IT security and cybersecurity.
Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH) is a certification issued by EC-Council that has a limited validity.
This post explains how to maintain the Certificed Ethical Hacker (CEH) certification, once you have obtained the certification.
This post is part of a series, so if you want to have a full view about CEH please visit the main post.
Maintaining and renewing the CEH Certification
What all the requisites to renew an EC-Council Certification under the ECE Scheme?
All EC-Council Certifications that are under the ECE scheme require the following requirements to keep renew them:
- Pay an annual ECE membership fee
- Complete a 3 year ECE program, that implies reporting 120 ECE credits within the 3-year window from the date you got your certificate
Upon completion of the 3 year ECE program and meeting the requirements, the member’s certification validity will be extended for another three years from the month of expiry.
You just pay an annual ECE membership fee for all EC-Council certifications under the ECE Scheme.
Should you not meet the requirements (fail to pay the annual fee or to complete the 3-year ECE program), the certification will be revoked.
Which EC-Council certifications are under the ECE scheme?
The certifications under the ECE scheme are: CEH, CEH (Practical), ECSA, ECSA (Practical), LPT, LPT (Master), CHFI, EISM, CCISO, CND, ECIH, EDRP, CASE, CSA, CBP, CPM, CTIA, ECES, ECSS, CEI, CAST, CIMP and CDM.
How much does cost to keep an EC-Council Certification under the ECE scheme?
It costs what you pay for the annual ECE membership, that was $80/year in 2021.
In addition, you will have the indirect costs of courses or event you pay to get the required ECE credits, though you could get them for free.
How do I pay the annual ECE membership fee?
To pay the annual ECE membership fee, follow these steps:
- Go to Aspen platform
- Login
- Go to tab “My Courses”
- “Membership type” box appears on top. If annual membership fee is not paid, you will find a “Pay now” button.
- You will be redirected to the EC-Council Store
The ECE membership validation period corresponds to the natural year (i.e., from 1 January to 31 December).
How do I request a proforma invoice for the annual ECE membership fee?
To contact the EC-Council invoicing department, you can either:
- Open a ticket: visit the EC-Council Zendesk portal, log in and submit your request
- Write an e-mail: Write an e-mail to finance@eccouncil.org.
The billing information is usually the following:
- Company: EC COUNCIL INTERNATIONAL LIMITED
- Tax ID: 900768
- Address: 1202 Capital Square Centre 5-19, Jardines Bazaar, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong 987987
- Phone: +603-22730080
- Fax:+22730090
How do I claim a paid membership that has not been updated in Aspen portal?
Once the payment has been done, the EC-Council Aspen portal should be updated so the deadline is extended for another year.
If you visit the Aspen portal and find that it has not been updated yet, you can make a claim.
To request the update of your membership status, send an e-mail to membersupport@eccouncil.org, attach a proof of payment and explain them the issue.
How do I fulfill the requirement to complete the ECE program?
During the three-year period before certification expires, the certification must be renewed by participating in EC-Council Continuing Education (ECE) Program.
Upon completion of the 3 year ECE program and meeting the requirements, the member’s certification validity will be extended for another three years from the month of expiry.
If a certified member earned certification/s that are included under the ECE scheme, he/she will have to achieve a total of 120 credits (per certification) within a period of three years. Since January 1st 2013, each certification have its own ECE recertification requirements within its respective 3-year ECE window.
It means that ECE for CEH, CEH (Practical) and any other additional EC-Council certificate under the ECE scheme, must be managed separately. Qualified ECE activities must have been completed within ECE program’s 3-year window and must be submitted in only one ECE 3-year window; i.e., an ECE activity cannot be shared among different certificates.
The ECE activity must occur inside the 3-year window. If they are
In addition, any member certified or recertified from January 1st 2016 onwards is liable to pay an annual membership fee.
More information about the ECE Program can be found on this external link.
How do I get ECE credits?
You get ECE credits by doing any of the following tasks:
- Volunteering in public sector – 1 credit per hour
- Association/Organization Chapter Meeting (per Meeting) – 1 credit per hour
- Author Article/Book Chapter/White Paper – 20 credits
- Authoring Course/Module – 40 credits
- Author Tool – 40 credits
- Authoring Book – 100 credits
- Contribution to the exam development:40 credits- 100 credits
- Certification/ Examination – 40 credits
- EC-Council Examination (ECE) – 120 credits
- EC-Council Survey – 20 credits
- Education Course – 1 credit per hour
- Education Seminar/Conference/Event – 1 credit per hour
- Higher Education – 15 credits per semester hour
- Identify New Vulnerability – 10 credits
- Presentation – 3 credits per hour
- Reading an Information Security Book/Article Review/Book Review/Case Study – 5 credits
- Teach New – 21 credits per day
- Teach Upgrade – 11 credits per day
- Review board- 80 credits
You can check the detailed list on this external link to Aspen platform.
If the particular event or activity is not listed on the Delta portal, you can contact the Administrator at delta@eccouncil.org for assistance
How do I register ECE credits?
You can register your ECE credits on Aspen platform.
Steps to register your ECE credits:
- Logon on Aspen.
- Click on “My Courses” tab, find the certification to which you want to add ECE credits and then Click on “ECE Status”
- Click on “Manage My Events”
- Click on “Add New Event”
- Here you will find option “Add Event”
Events that are EC-Council related may be added automatically. For example, when you pass CEH Practical after CEH ANSI, 20 ECE credits corresponding to CEH Practical will be added automatically to your CEH ANSI.
What can I do if my certification has been revoked?
If member fails to meet certification requirements during the suspension period, he/she will have the certification revoked and will no longer be allowed to continue usage of the certification logo and related benefits. Members whose certification is revoked will be required to retake and pass the respective new exam to regain their certification.
Can ECE credits be audited?
Yes, ECE credits can be audited.
Certified members are required to maintain sufficient evidence to show your involvement in activities that earns you ECE credits.