OSCPOffensive Security Certified Professional
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Overview
What is OSCP?
The Offensive Security Certified Professional is considered the most prestigious practical certification for penetration testers in the security community and has further solidified its cult status in recent years. The fully practical 24-hour exam format (hacking + report) fundamentally distinguishes OSCP from multiple-choice certifications and serves as a credible proof of performance. Since 2024, OSCP+ replaces the original OSCP for new candidates and extends the credential with an Active Directory scenario. A known limitation is its focused scope: OSCP covers classic network pentesting but no web application depth (OSWE) or advanced exploitation (OSED/OSEE). In job postings for penetration testers, OSCP is the most requested technical certification worldwide.
Quick facts
Key details
Cost, prerequisites, exam & renewal
Prerequisites
No formal prerequisites. PEN-200 course (included in price) is the official preparation. Solid networking and Linux knowledge strongly recommended.
Exam format
Practical: 23 hours 45 min hands-on exam in live network + subsequent report. Proctored. Passing threshold: 70 points/100.
Renewal & maintenance
Valid indefinitely. No renewal required.
Classification
CertMap score and matching roles
Rating
Matching NICE roles
More certifications
More certifications
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OSAI+OffSec AI Security ProfessionalOSCC-SECOffSec CyberCore Certified - Security EssentialsOSCC-SJDOffSec CyberCore Certified - Secure Java Development EssentialsOSCP+OffSecOSEPOffensive Security Experienced Penetration TesterOSIROffSec Incident ResponderOSTHOffSec Threat HunterIn Pentesting / Red Team
CEHEC-CouncilGPENGIACOSCP+OffSecOSEPOffSecPECB LEHPECBPECB LPTPPECBPenTest+CompTIAThis page follows CertMap methodology: editorial content is curated by hand. Score, costs and NICE mapping are aggregated from official provider documents. Score methodology → · TCO methodology →
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