Learn-Social-Engineering-From-Scratch by Zaid Sabih

On September 27, 2026

In Android , Udemy

Author:Zaid Sabih

Duration:12.5 hours on-demand video

Actual Duration:3h 29m

Release date:2025

Publisher:Udemy

Skill level:Beginner

Language:English

Exercise files:Yes

Software:Kali Linux, Maltego, Empire, BeEF, TheFatRat, Microsoft Office, Windows, Linux, Android

Course URL:https://www.udemy.com/course/learn-social-engineering-from-scratch/

Hack Windows, macOS, Linux and Android with real social engineering tactics — and learn how to shut those attacks down.

No zero-days needed. This course shows how real break-ins happen through people — with social engineering, custom backdoors, and smart delivery tricks that work on fully patched Windows, macOS, Linux and Android. You build everything yourself in Kali Linux, test it in a safe lab, then learn how to spot it and stop it.

🎯 What you’ll learn

Hack patched Windows, Linux, macOS and Android using social engineering
Generate undetectable backdoors for all major operating systems
Build remote keyloggers and credential harvesters with email reporting
Bypass anti-virus by editing source code and hex values manually
Embed malware in images, PDFs, Office docs and legit Linux packages
Backdoor Android apps and control camera, mic, GPS, messages and files
Spoof emails and sender names and send from any account
Clone any website and steal logins with fake pages and fake prompts
Deliver payloads as fake updates, fake installers and indirect lures
Use BeEF to hook browsers and run browser-based attacks
Upgrade shells, maintain persistence, escalate privileges and pivot networks
Detect trojans manually and analyze malware in a sandbox

✅ Requirements

Skills: Basic IT skills, no Linux, programming or hacking knowledge required
Tools: Kali Linux, virtualization software for VMs, Windows / macOS / Linux host system
Hardware: Computer with minimum 4GB RAM

📝 Description

You start from zero. No Linux. No coding. No hacking background. First you set up your lab — Kali Linux, Windows and Ubuntu as virtual machines — and get comfortable with the Linux terminal. Then you go straight to hacking. Every attack is shown live, with the why behind it, not just clicks.

Next you learn the recon side. You use Maltego to pull domains, emails, hosting info, files, social accounts and friend networks into one visual graph. That graph turns into a real plan: who to target, what file they would open, what email they would trust. It is practical OSINT, not theory slides.

Then you build the payloads. Backdoors, remote keyloggers, password stealers, download-and-execute stagers. You make them for Windows, macOS, Linux and Android. You also learn the sneaky part: bind them to images and PDFs, spoof extensions, change icons, run silent in background, hide them in Office docs and legit Debian packages, and tweak source and hex to slip past anti-virus.

Delivery is where social engineering wins. You set up SMTP, spoof emails, clone login pages, push fake updates and fake installers, and use BeEF to hook browsers. You even learn indirect lures that get a click without a direct message. All tested inside your lab and over the internet with port-forwarding.

Finally you handle post-exploitation like a pro. Read, upload, download and run files. Log keys. Take screenshots. Keep access after reboot. Escalate to admin. Pivot from one hacked box to others on the same network. And on Android, pull messages, location, camera and social accounts. You close out by flipping sides: spotting spoofed mail, finding trojans by hand, and checking files in a sandbox.

🧑‍🎓 Who this course is for

People who want to learn ethical hacking and social engineering from scratch
Anyone curious how hackers break into fully patched systems with no obvious bug
Users who want to lock down their own devices, emails and browsers against these tricks

🧑‍🏫 About the Author

Zaid Sabih is an ethical hacker and founder of zSecurity, known for hands-on, no-fluff training in penetration testing. His courses have pulled in tens of thousands of students — this one alone passed 50,000 learners with a 4.7 bestseller rating. He teaches by doing: build it in the lab, break it, fix it, and understand how attackers think.

🏁 Final Result

A full lab portfolio: custom backdoors and keyloggers for Windows, macOS, Linux and Android, plus cloned login pages, spoofed email campaigns, BeEF browser attacks and documented post-exploitation with persistence and pivoting — all tested ethically in your own environment.

Curriculum

📋 Course content

Module 1: Start Here & Lab Setup
- Teaser – Hacking An Android Phone & Accessing The Camera5:34
- Introduction to Social Engineering3:14
- Course Overview4:16
- Update Notice2:08
- Lab Overview & Needed Software5:54
- Initial Preparation9:12
- Installing Kali Linux as a VM on Windows9:16
- Installing Kali Linux as a VM on Apple Mac OS (Intel & Silicon Chips)9:24
- Installing Kali Linux as a VM on Linux10:41
- Kali Linux Basics5:22
- The Linux Terminal & Basic Linux Commands9:41
Module 2: Information Gathering & Attack Planning
- Introduction1:52
- Maltego Overview7:05
- Discovering Domain Info & Emails Associated With Target7:24
- Discovering Information About Hosting Company, Support Team Emails & Admin Email6:55
- Discovering Files, Links, Websites & Other Companies Related To Target5:12
- Using The Gathered Info To Build An Attack Strategy4:16
- Discovering Websites, Links & Social Networking Accounts9:28
- Discovering Twitter Friends & Associated Accounts4:57
- Discovering Emails Of The Target Friends4:39
- Analysing The Gathered Info & Building An Attack Strategy8:41
Module 3: Windows Backdoors & Payloads
- Introduction to Windows Malware1:16
- Installing Windows As a Virtual Machine5:43
- Installing Windows as a Virtual Machine on Apple Silicon Computers4:53
- Backdoors and Payloads Basics11:52
- Creating Your Own Backdoor8:14
- Listening for Backdoor Connections4:15
- Hacking Windows 11 Using Your Own Backdoor6:27
- Introduction to The Fat Rat6:18
- Generating An Undetectable Backdoor For Windows – Method 211:29
- Introduction to Empire8:25
- Creating a Windows Powershell Stager & Hacking Windows 108:02
- Modifying Backdoor Source To Bypass All Anti-virus Programs8:02
Module 4: Keyloggers, Password Stealers & AV Evasion
- Introduction to Keyloggers6:27
- Creating A Remote Keylogger9:35
- Using A Remote Keylogger To Capture Key Strikes Including Passwords7:31
- Password Recovery Basics7:29
- Recovering Saved Passwords From Local Machine3:17
- Recovering Saved Passwords From A Remote Machine11:39
- Bypassing All Anti-Virus Programs By Modifying Hex Vales10:35
- Download & Execute Payload6:18
- Creating The Perfect Spying Tool6:49
- Download & Execute Payload (Method 2)6:20
Module 5: Hiding Malware & Office Attacks
- Embedding Malware With Any File Type Like An Image Or PDF10:14
- Running Malware Silently In The Background7:57
- Changing Trojans Icon7:25
- Spoofing File Extension from .exe to anything else (pdf, png, etc.)10:27
- Embedding Malware With Any File Type Like An Image Or PDF (Method 2)6:36
- Embedding a Backdoor in Microsoft Office Document8:45
- Embedding Any Malware in a Microsoft Office Document10:20
Module 6: Hacking macOS
- Introduction3:11
- Hacking Mac OS X Using A Meterpreter Backdoor12:04
- Hacking Mac OS X Using An Empire Stager6:35
- Converting Basic Backdoor To An Executable3:33
- Embedding A Normal File With Backdoor9:20
- Generating a Basic Trojan For Mac OS X6:49
- Changing Trojans Icon5:51
- Configuring The Trojan To Run Silently6:14
Module 7: Hacking Linux & Android
- Installing Ubuntu As a Virtual Machine5:30
- Hacking Into Linux-Like Systems Using One Command8:54
- More Advanced Linux Backdoor6:35
- Using A Remote Keylogger To Capture Key Strikes Including Passwords9:58
- Recovering Saved Passwords From A Local Machine7:12
- Execute & Report Payload6:53
- Recovering Saved Passwords From A Remote Machine6:50
- Embedding Malware in a Legitimate Linux Package – Part 112:37
- Embedding Malware in a Legitimate Linux Package – Part 24:59
- Backdooring Android Apps12:14
Module 8: Email Spoofing & Fake Websites
- Introduction1:51
- Mail Deliver – Setting up an SMTP Server6:15
- Mail Delivery – Spoofing Emails6:48
- Mail Delivery – Spoofing Email Name6:21
- Mail Delivery – Spoofing Emails (method 2)10:28
- Hacking OS X & Linux Using Pure Social Engineering Without Sending Any Files10:09
- Creating A Replica Of Any Website / Login Page6:02
- Stealing Login Info Using Fake A Login Page10:24
Module 9: Browser Attacks with BeEF & Fake Updates
- BeEF Overview & Basic Hook Method7:08
- Injecting BeEFs Hook In Any Webpage4:57
- URL Manipulation9:51
- Luring Targets Into Accessing Malware Without Direct Interaction10:44
- Basic BeEF Commands4:24
- Stealing Credentials/Passwords Using A Fake Login Prompt2:17
- Hacking Windows 10 Using A Fake Update4:40
- Hacking Mac OS X Using A Fake Update4:29
- Hacking Linux Using A Fake Update4:45
Module 10: Hacking Outside Your Network
- Overview of the Setup6:26
- Ex1 – Generating a Backdoor That Works Outside The Network5:05
- Configuring The Router To Forward Connections To Kali6:58
- Ex2 – Using BeEF Outside The Network5:49
Module 11: Post-Exploitation, Pivoting & Persistence
- Introduction2:11
- Upgrading Basic Shell Access To A Meterpreter/Empire Access9:06
- Meterpreter Basics6:22
- File System Commands5:10
- Maintaining Access (Persistence)7:51
- Spying – Capturing Key Strikes & Taking Screen Shots2:40
- Pivoting – Theory (What is Pivoting?)7:07
- Pivoting – Exploiting Devices on The Same Network As a Hacked Computer8:11
- Controlling Android Phone & Accessing Mic, Camera, Messages, File System & More8:43
- Maintaining Access On OS X10:28
- Basics Of Empire Agents6:24
- File System Commands5:59
- Upload & Execute Shell Commands4:33
- Injecting a Backdoor In a System Processes9:38
- 2 Methods to Escalating Privileges On OS X7:16
- Maintaining Access On OS X5:34
Module 12: Defense & Next Steps
- Detecting Fake/Spoofed Emails6:08
- How to Protect Against BeEF & Other Browser Exploits4:17
- Detecting Trojans Manually5:32
- Detecting Trojans Using a Sandbox3:16
- Bonus Lecture – Whats next?3:40