Every question,
answered honestly.

Yes — completely free, forever. Every track (SOC & Blue Team, Digital Forensics, OSINT mini-course) is free with no sign-up required. The only investment is your time — roughly 1–2 hours a day. No paywall, no trial period, no premium tier. Every tool recommended also has a free tier or is open-source.

No prior experience needed. The SOC track starts from absolute zero — Month 1 covers Linux terminal basics, and every concept is explained before you use it. If you can use a computer and commit to consistent practice, you can start today.

Roughly 1–2 hours per day, 5–6 days a week. Each month is built around approximately 40 hours of content. You can compress this into fewer weeks with more daily hours, or stretch it if your schedule requires. The structure guides you — it doesn't lock you in.

Yes — CyberPath was specifically built this way. The creator built the entire platform between work shifts and CCNA classes. The self-paced structure means you study when you can. Many students take 5–6 weeks per month instead of 4 when balancing other commitments, and that is completely fine.

The roadmap is fully self-paced — there are no deadlines, cohorts, or expiry dates. If life gets in the way, just pick up where you left off. The weekly schedule inside each month is a guide, not a contract. Consistency over weeks matters more than perfect daily streaks.

12 months at roughly 40 hours per month. Each month is a structured block of labs, reading, and hands-on practice across 4 weeks. You can go faster or slower — the roadmap adapts to your schedule.

8 months at roughly 40 hours per month, covering forensic imaging, memory and disk forensics, PCAP analysis, mobile forensics, malware analysis, and court-ready report writing.

The SOC track covers the day-to-day work of a Security Operations Center analyst — SIEM tools, threat intelligence, alert triage, and incident response. The Digital Forensics track goes deeper into investigating evidence after an incident: disk and memory forensics, PCAP analysis, mobile forensics, and malware analysis. Many students complete SOC first, then move into Forensics.

The OSINT (Open Source Intelligence) mini-course is a free 30-day intensive track covering techniques for gathering information from public sources — social media, domain records, image metadata, and more — using tools like Sherlock, Maigret, and Maltego. It runs independently of the main tracks and can be started at any time.

The SOC track prepares you for CompTIA Security+, CompTIA CySA+, and Blue Team Labs 1 (BTL1). The Digital Forensics track prepares you for GCFE (GIAC Certified Forensic Examiner) and supports GCFA study. Each month that covers certification content identifies the relevant exam and provides a preparation guide.

No — CyberPath complements certifications, it doesn't replace them. The roadmap builds the practical, hands-on skills that certification study alone often misses. Several months are structured around certification preparation, so both work together.

Yes — many SOC Analyst and DFIR roles hire based on demonstrated skills, certifications, and a portfolio rather than a degree. CyberPath is built specifically for this path: every month produces GitHub-publishable lab write-ups, and the track covers the certifications (Security+, CySA+, BTL1) that employers accept as degree alternatives.

A SOC (Security Operations Center) Analyst monitors an organisation's IT systems for threats, investigates security alerts, triages incidents, and escalates confirmed attacks to senior responders. It is one of the most in-demand entry-level cybersecurity roles, with no degree typically required — skills and certifications matter more.

DFIR (Digital Forensics and Incident Response) is the field of investigating cybersecurity incidents by collecting, preserving, and analysing digital evidence. DFIR professionals examine hard drives, memory dumps, network captures, and mobile devices to determine what happened, when, and who was responsible — and produce court-admissible reports.

Real, industry-standard tools — Wireshark, Splunk, the ELK stack, Volatility3, Autopsy, FTK Imager, Velociraptor, NetworkMiner, and more — plus OSINT tools like Sherlock and Maigret. Every lab uses tools that working SOC analysts and DFIR investigators use day to day.

No purchases required to start or complete any track. Every tool recommended has a free tier or is fully open-source. Some optional paid platforms (like a TryHackMe subscription for certain rooms) are noted where relevant, but always with a free alternative provided.

A dedicated community space is planned. In the meantime, the TryHackMe Discord and r/cybersecurity on Reddit are active communities closely aligned with this roadmap's content. Follow the project on GitHub for community updates.

CyberPath Academy was built by Asbin Karki, a 3rd-semester computing student who built the entire platform solo in 16 days between work shifts and CCNA classes — after finding that existing free resources lacked structured guidance for career-focused learners. Read the full story →

TryHackMe is a platform of individual practice rooms — excellent for hands-on labs but it doesn't give you a structured career roadmap or tell you what to study next. CyberPath Academy is a free, structured, month-by-month curriculum that tells you exactly what to study, in what order, and why — using TryHackMe itself as one of many free resources along the way. Think of CyberPath as the map; TryHackMe is one of the roads.

TCM Security offers excellent paid courses taught by industry professionals. CyberPath Academy is entirely free and structured as a long-term career roadmap rather than individual courses. The two complement each other well — CyberPath provides the structure and free-resource path; TCM Security courses can slot in where deeper paid instruction is wanted.