CHFI — Computer Hacking Forensic Investigator
A broad, vendor-neutral forensics survey credential examined as 150 multiple-choice questions over four hours, ANAB-accredited and stated by EC-Council to carry DoD 8140 approval.
Type: CertificationWorking practitionersCareer changers
Offered by EC-Council
The facts
- Cost
- EC-Council does not publish the exam voucher or training prices on the CHFI pages we could read, so no figure can be quoted. Expect the training bundle to be the dominant cost and ask for a written quote.Figure read 2026-09-12 from www.eccouncil.org/train-certify/computer-hacking-forensic-investigator-chfi
- Prerequisites
- No prerequisite is stated on the CHFI page. EC-Council's general non-training eligibility route requires documented information-security experience; we could not confirm the figure for CHFI specifically.
- Format
- Exam 312-49: 150 multiple-choice questions, 4 hours, with cut scores ranging from 60% to 85% depending on exam form. The five-day course includes 68 hands-on labs, but the labs are training content rather than a graded certification requirement.
- Length
- Five-day course in iLearn self-paced, iWeek live online or in-person partner delivery, plus the four-hour exam.
- Renewal
- Under EC-Council's ECE continuing-education scheme, which is generally 120 credits over three years across EC-Council certifications. The CHFI-specific figure is not stated on the CHFI page.
- Accreditation
- EC-Council's CHFI page states the certification is ANAB (ANSI) accredited to ISO/IEC 17024 and has US Department of Defense 8140 approval. We could not corroborate the DoD claim against the authoritative DoD list, which sits behind a .mil authentication gate.
- Who it suits
- Someone who needs an accredited, DoD-listed forensics credential for a hiring filter, or who wants broad orientation before choosing a specialism — not someone who needs to prove examination skill.
- Audience
- Working practitioners · Career changers
Strengths
- ANAB/ISO 17024 accreditation is real and checkable, and it puts CHFI on the same accreditation footing as GIAC.
- Genuinely broad curriculum — cloud, mobile, network, malware and dark web — which is useful orientation if you do not yet know what you want to specialise in.
- Large volume of lab material and evidence files included with the course.
- EC-Council's stated DoD 8140 approval matters for US federal and defence-contractor hiring, where baseline certification lists gate roles.
Limitations
- Certification is gated on a 150-question multiple-choice exam. Unlike IACIS CFCE, ISFCE CCE or EnCE, no graded practical work product is required to hold it — the labs are training, not assessment.
- Neither the exam voucher price nor the training price is published, so it cannot be priced from the site.
- The breadth that makes it good orientation makes it shallow as preparation for real casework; practitioners consistently rate it below the GIAC and IACIS routes on depth, and the exam structure supports that assessment.
- The DoD 8140 claim is EC-Council's own, and we could not verify it against the DoD's list.
- ECE renewal terms are stated at the scheme level rather than for CHFI specifically.
Sources
Costs, prerequisites and exam formats in this field change often, and several providers price by region, cohort or employer agreement. Every figure on this page carries the date it was read and a link to the page it was read from. Confirm current terms with the provider before you spend anything.