Offensive Security Certifications Overview
Offensive Security provides industry-leading cybersecurity certifications focused on penetration testing, ethical hacking, and red teaming. These certifications emphasize hands-on, practical skills through real-world scenarios and rigorous exams. Here’s a breakdown of their key certifications:
1. Offensive Security Certified Professional (OSCP)
Focus: Penetration Testing & Ethical Hacking
Ideal For: Cybersecurity professionals, penetration testers, and ethical hackers
Key Learning Areas:
- Penetration Testing Methodologies – Understanding the full penetration testing lifecycle
- Information Gathering & Enumeration – Identifying vulnerabilities and attack surfaces
- Exploitation & Privilege Escalation – Gaining access and elevating privileges
- Web Application Attacks – Exploiting common web vulnerabilities (SQL Injection, XSS, etc.)
- Active Directory Attacks – Attacking Windows-based environments
- Report Writing – Documenting findings and recommendations professionally
✅ Exam: 24-hour hands-on practical exam where candidates must exploit multiple machines.
2. Offensive Security Experienced Penetration Tester (OSEP)
Focus: Advanced Penetration Testing & Evasion Techniques
Ideal For: Experienced penetration testers looking to bypass modern security defenses
Key Learning Areas:
- Bypassing AV & EDR – Evading modern security solutions
- Advanced Lateral Movement – Pivoting within internal networks
- Custom Malware Development – Creating undetectable exploits
- Windows Privilege Escalation – Exploiting advanced Windows vulnerabilities
- C2 Frameworks & Evasion – Using and modifying command-and-control frameworks
✅ Exam: 48-hour practical exam focusing on red team tactics.
3. Offensive Security Web Expert (OSWE)
Focus: Web Application Security & Exploitation
Ideal For: Web application security testers and developers
Key Learning Areas:
- Source Code Auditing – Identifying vulnerabilities in application code
- Advanced Web Exploitation – Exploiting logic flaws, authentication bypasses, and RCE
- SQL Injection & XSS – Finding and exploiting database and script vulnerabilities
- Deserialization Attacks – Exploiting insecure object handling
- Custom Web Shells – Writing and deploying malicious payloads
✅ Exam: 48-hour hands-on exam requiring deep exploitation of web applications.
4. Offensive Security Exploit Developer (OSED)
Focus: Exploit Development & Reverse Engineering
Ideal For: Security researchers, exploit developers, and red teamers
Key Learning Areas:
- Windows Shellcoding – Writing custom shellcode for exploitation
- Buffer Overflows & ROP Chains – Developing exploits for memory corruption vulnerabilities
- Windows Kernel Exploitation – Identifying and exploiting kernel vulnerabilities
- DEP & ASLR Bypass – Defeating modern security protections
- Reverse Engineering – Analyzing and modifying compiled binaries
✅ Exam: 48-hour practical exam on advanced exploit development.
5. Offensive Security Defense Analyst (OSDA) – Upcoming
Focus: Defensive Security & Threat Hunting
Ideal For: Blue teamers, SOC analysts, and threat hunters
Key Learning Areas:
- Threat Hunting & Detection – Identifying malicious activity in networks
- Incident Response – Investigating and mitigating security breaches
- SIEM & Log Analysis – Analyzing security logs and events
- Endpoint Protection – Configuring and hardening systems against attacks
- Adversary Simulation – Understanding attacker tactics to strengthen defenses
✅ Exam: Expected to be hands-on, focusing on real-world defensive scenarios.
Why Choose Offensive Security Certifications?
✔ Hands-On Training: Focused on real-world attack scenarios
✔ Respected in the Industry: Recognized by top cybersecurity firms and organizations
✔ Challenging Exams: No multiple-choice questions—fully practical assessments
✔ Career Growth: Opens doors to high-paying cybersecurity roles
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