Packed and Obfuscated Malware Analysis
RCCE students will learn how attackers use packers, obfuscation, encryption, and staging techniques to frustrate analysis and evade detection. RCCE students will learn to identify common packing patterns, unpack samples safely, recover meaningful artifacts, recognize staged payload delivery, and understand the defensive implications of anti-analysis techniques used in modern malware. The course covers practical scenarios ranging from unpacking workflows to deobfuscation, behavioral validation, and intelligence extraction. RCCE students will learn to analyze complex systems and think like an attacker to better defend the organization. This comprehensive course delivers practical knowledge applicable to real-world cybersecurity operations. Starting from foundational concepts, RCCE students will learn through a combination of concept explanation, practical demonstration, and hands-on exercises.
- Security Engineers building defensive controls
- Security Analysts and Blue Team members
- Systems Administrators with security responsibilities
- GRC and Risk Professionals supporting controls
- Professionals implementing Packed and Obfuscated Malware Analysis
- Execute hands-on tasks for malware analysis
- Explain Course Overview fundamentals
- Execute hands-on tasks for what you will learn
- Execute hands-on tasks for course structure — covering Packing fundamentals and entropy analysis.
- Execute hands-on tasks for what is packed malware?
- Execute hands-on tasks for packing defined
- Execute hands-on tasks for why attackers pack — covering Evade signature-based AV detection.
- Execute hands-on tasks for packed pe retains valid executable format — covering Evade signature-based AV detection.
- Execute hands-on tasks for obfuscation fundamentals
- Execute hands-on tasks for code-level obfuscation
- Execute hands-on tasks for data obfuscation — covering Dead code insertion and junk instructions, XOR-encoded strings and config blocks.
- Execute hands-on tasks for common packers landscape
| Module 01 | Malware Analysis |
| Module 02 | Course Overview |
| Module 03 | What You Will Learn |
| Module 04 | Course Structure |
| Module 05 | What Is Packed Malware? |
| Module 06 | Packing Defined |
| Module 07 | Why Attackers Pack |
| Module 08 | Packed PE retains valid executable format |
| Module 09 | Obfuscation Fundamentals |
| Module 10 | Code-Level Obfuscation |
| Module 11 | Data Obfuscation |
| Module 12 | Common Packers Landscape |
| Module 13 | Key Trait |
| Module 14 | Crypter Mechanics |
All hands-on labs run on Rocheston Rose X OS. Students practice packed and obfuscated malware analysis by implementing the controls discussed in class, with a focus on real-world deployment, monitoring, and validation.
- Lab 1: Execute hands-on tasks for malware analysis
- Lab 2: Explain Course Overview fundamentals
- Lab 3: Execute hands-on tasks for what you will learn
- Lab 4: Execute hands-on tasks for course structure
- Lab 5: Execute hands-on tasks for what is packed malware?
Upon successful completion of this course, students will receive an official RCCE Course Completion Certificate for Packed and Obfuscated Malware Analysis, verifiable through the Rocheston certification portal.
- Full access to all course materials and slide decks
- Hands-on lab access on Rocheston Rose X OS environment
- Access to Rocheston CyberNotes
- Access to Rocheston Zelfire — EDR/XDR SIEM platform
- Access to Rocheston Raven — online cyber range exercise platform
- Access to Rocheston Vulnerability Vines AI