Industrial Embedded Systems Hardware Penetration Testing (Udemy.com)
Unlock offensive hardware security skills with tools and tactics tailored for the ICS/OT and IIoT domain!
Created by: Marcel Rick-Cen
Last updated January 2025
What you will learn
- Build an affordable hardware hacking challenge board (we use a NodeMCU ESP8266 dev board) to apply your newly learned skills!
- Create a secure and functional hardware hacking lab for this course and your future assessments.
- Identify vulnerabilities in industrial embedded systems (ICS/OT and IIoT)!
- This is not a course on soldering!
How it compares
Against the other 295 rated Udemy courses in Arduino on CourseDuck:
- Rating4.7 out of 5higher than 90% of them
- Reviews116#184 of 296 by number of reviews
- Length4.3 hoursshorter than 56% of them
- Last updatedJanuary 2025more recently than 62% of them
Course Description
Step into the world of hardware penetration testing - where technology meets curiosity! If you’re experienced in traditional penetration testing, this course will open new doors, equipping you with the specialized techniques to target industrial embedded systems. Industrial devices present unique attack vectors and require a precise approach; here, you’ll develop the expertise to identify hidden entry points within PCBs, firmware, and industrial IoT components.
Starting with the fundamentals of electrical and signal reconnaissance, you’ll learn the ins and outs of PCB hardware tools, delve into firmware and serial interfaces, and explore practical methods for exploiting these systems. This course is rooted in real-world case study industrial devices like a gateway and communication server. The Chronoguard Challenge Board bringing an authentic touch to your skill development. Each module is designed to deepen your understanding of how to leverage specialized tools like multimeters, logic analyzers, and flash programmers in your tests.
By the end of this hands-on course, you’ll have expanded your offensive hardware security toolkit with tactics tailored for the ICS/OT and IIoT domain, enabling you to craft advanced attack paths and discover vulnerabilities in industrial environments that remain untouched by traditional IT-focused methods. Elevate your penetration testing skills and gain the expertise needed to secure critical OT systems against the most sophisticated threats. Join now and be among the experts who can bridge the gap between IT and OT security.
Disclaimer: Always prioritize electrical safety—avoid contact with exposed, voltage-carrying leads and be mindful of hazards. When applying these skills to industrial hardware, success is not guaranteed; debug interfaces are often undocumented or disabled. This course does not cover soldering skills; some basic craftsmanship and soldering knowledge are recommended for effective application.
Instructor Details
- 4.7 Rating
116 Reviews
Marcel Rick-Cen
Marcel Rick-Cen is an Automation Engineer, OT/IIoT Security Consultant, industrial cybersecurity researcher, international conference speaker, and Founder & Lead Instructor of FOXGRID Industrial.
Holding a Master's degree in Automation Engineering and bringing over 20 years of experience in industrial environments, Marcel has worked directly with control systems in manufacturing, chemical processing, utilities, and critical infrastructure. His background spans automation engineering, industrial networking, troubleshooting, and securing PLCs, HMIs, industrial communication protocols, remote access solutions, and embedded devices.
By day, Marcel helps organizations assess and secure Operational Technology (OT) environments as an OT/IIoT Security Consultant. By night, he researches industrial hardware. His work includes firmware analysis, hardware hacking, industrial protocol security, embedded device security, vulnerability research, and responsible disclosure. His research has contributed to coordinated vulnerability disclosures affecting industrial products and remote access gateways, such as CVE-2024-57790, CVE-2024-45275, or CVE-2025-41688.
More courses by Marcel Rick-Cen
Practical Industrial Control System Penetration Testing (2025)
4.4 (1,098 Reviews)
Provider: Udemy
Time: 2.2h
$29.99
More Arduino courses
Learn to Build a Computer (PC) in 2026 - all types!
4.9 (245 Reviews)
Provider: Udemy
Time: 6.1h
$74.99
Raspberry Pi For Beginners - 2026 Complete Course
4.8 (3,105 Reviews)
Provider: Udemy
Time: 10.6h
$89.99
Ultimate Guide to Raspberry Pi : Tips, Tricks and Hacks (2023)
4.8 (2,363 Reviews)
Provider: Udemy
Time: 5.2h
$69.99
Mastering Microcontroller: STM32-LTDC, LCD-TFT, LVGL (MCU3) (2026)
4.8 (487 Reviews)
Provider: Udemy
Time: 8.1h
$79.99
Arduino Step by Step: Getting Started (2024)
4.7 (8,714 Reviews)
Provider: Udemy
Time: 21.4h
$159.99
Reviews
By Anonymized User on 9/3/2025
Nice course to get starting with pentesting electronics whether it is in ICS system or medical embedded devices.
By Michael RODRIGUEZ on 8/26/2025
This is an excellent course so far, very organized and to the point and easy to follow along. only small complaint was the sound level was a little and cut off sometimes at the beginning of the lecture however I was able to turn on the transcript which filled in that gap.
By Kareshma Ragoonathsingh on 7/7/2025
VERY VERY GOOD COURSE. WILL 100% RECOMMEND. IT HAD GREAT CONTENT AND RESOURCES. THE INSTRUCTOR WAS EXCEPTIONALLY KNOWLEDGEABLE
By Kirren Hartas on 6/17/2025
This was good. Easy to follow along with. My only gripe is the tiny lectures. But that's a personal preference thing.
By Zarat on 5/7/2025
This is a simple and easy-to-understand course for learning UART debugging. The techniques we learn in this course apply not only to OT security testing but also to IoT security testing.
By Thiyagaraj on 2/9/2025
Detailed discussion on hardware penetration testing. Provides knowledge on various tools techniques and provides task for exploring the knowledge. Overall the course is good and meets the expectations.
By David Torres M on 1/17/2025
It's an excellent course, the instructor is very good at explaining and gets straight to the point. It's going on my favorites list!
By Jakub Jarosz on 11/22/2024
Just got all required hardware for the course. The course is fantastic! You learn practical, valuable skills that future-proof your career in cyberspace.
By Irvan Hendrik on 11/6/2024
I have joined several of Marcel's courses and all of them are fantastic. The courses are extremely clear and easy to follow for beginner or even professional.
By Enock Roki on 11/6/2024
Excellent very formative and I'm enjoying the course
Quality Score
No CourseDuck member has rated this course yet. Taken it? Give each part a thumbs up or down.
Overall Score : 94 / 100







