ElearnSecurity ARES Course vs GIAC Reverse Engineering Malware

Hey all, was curious if anyone here has completed or knows someone who has completed the ARES (Advanced Reverse Engineering Software) course on Elearnsecurity.com , basically I would like to know how closely it matches up to GIAC Reverse Engineering Malware. I am a cheap person and rather than pay 4 grand + for the GIAC test, I was going to take ARES, continue self studying and then "challenge" the GREM, much, much cheaper to do it the latter way...

Reverse Engineering is something I have a little experience in as it is opening up quite a few doors with my employer by knowing how to do it... Any one with experience that can help me out. Thanks!

Find more posts tagged with

SAVE $250 on Your Boot Camp — Use Code "EXAM26"

Exclusively for TechExams members for Infosec Boot Camps starting before April 30, 2026

View Boot Camps

Comments

SephStorm

ARES is very new I don't know how many people will have completed it.

Whook

I took ARES but I do not know GIAC but if you have any questions about ARES shoot!

ramrunner800

I'd be interested in this too. GREM is supposed to be an amazing course, but at the SANS price it's tough to make happen. I have done two ElearnSecurity courses in the past, and found them to be very good as well.

SaSkiller

Whook wrote: »

I took ARES but I do not know GIAC but if you have any questions about ARES shoot!

What can you tell us about the course? What level of programming/ASM knowledge is required? How complete was the training?

cynicbeard

I believe that GREM is taught by Lenny Zeltser. He's widely known as a SME for malware analysis and I believe that he created the GREM curriculum as well (don't hold me to that).

SANS training is top notch. I don't know anything about ARES, but if you want to see which one may have more value, run a search on Dice.com for either cert and see which one yields the most results

Personally... I would do GREM

ramrunner800

I definitely concur that if I had $6k lying around I'd do GREM, but I don't. I certainly don't think that ARES would be a huge resume booster, but the skills it teaches would be, and that's more important to me than letters after my name. I've had good experiences with eLearnSecurity before, but I haven't bothered to take any of their exams. That said, I have a friend who challenged GREM w/ just Practical Malware Analysis and the Malware Analysts Cookbook, and he said he barely missed passing. If ARES is decent, I would definitely like to take it and then challenge GREM.

SaSkiller

I'll be doing something similar, i'll be taking FOR610 and for now the plan is to challenge the CREA because it is a practical exam. I am considering taking the GREM as well, but at this point it is not certain.

LionelTeo

Everything GIAC exam can be challenge, their official exam comes with two practice where you can google up everything that you never learn before during the practice exam and use them for the actual exam. It all boils down to hardwork.