Due to the rising sophistication and frequency of cyberattacks, the need to hire skilled penetration testers is on the rise across various sectors. Being an ethical hacker, or a red team specialist, your choice of the best penetration testing course and certification can define your career path in the future. Among the most well-recognised certifications in the area, one can name CEH, CPENT, and OSCP, which validate different levels of knowledge and practical skills.

If you are contemplating taking a VAPT course, you should be aware of the certification context, as it is relevant to making a decision.

CEH – Certified Ethical Hacker

EC-Council Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH) is typically the first step for individuals who want to become a penetration tester. CEH covers some basic hacking tools and techniques that good and bad hackers implement. The CEH mainly concentrates on reconnaissance, system hacking, social engineering, malware threats, and web server attacks.

Perfect for beginners, CEH is a good starting point for someone who is new to penetration testing. Penetration testing courses are usually hands-on lab courses to mimic actual environments to enable the student to use the techniques and tools in a test environment.

CPENT – Certified Penetration Testing Professional

CPENT is suited for mid- to higher-level cybersecurity experts. CPENT is another EC-Council certification, and this covers higher-level hands-on penetration testing skills such as network exploitation, evasions, Active Directory attacks, and cloud and IoT environment penetration testing.

The exam itself is 24 hours and is a live environment exam, pushing your skills to replicate multi-layered attacks. CPENT is better for individuals with a little bit of hands-on experience in the field or having basic training, like CEH or a VAPT course.

OSCP – Offensive Security Certified Professional

Named as one of the hardest and realistic penetration testing certifications, OSCP is carried out by Offensive Security. It’s well-known for its rigorous practical exam and no-handholding policy. Applicants need to take advantage of vulnerabilities in multiple machines and provide an extensive report of their work.

OSCP is ideal for candidates with sound technical experience in operating systems, scripting, and networking. In contrast to CEH, which is tool-based and theoretical, OSCP is hands-on and critical thinking.

Other Important Certifications

Although CEH, CPENT, and OSCP are widely known, other important certifications are:

• CompTIA PenTest+: Vendor-neutral cert for mid-level pen testers
• GIAC GPEN: Emphasises advanced network penetration test practices
• eLearnSecurity eCPPT: Provides an energetic and well-balanced pen testing strategy

The cert that is best suited for you will depend on your career ambitions, skill level presently, and the scope of penetration testing you wish to specialise in.

Concluding Thoughts

Before venturing deep into complex certifications such as CPENT or OSCP, a solid foundation is needed. Hacker School provides a comprehensive VAPT course that covers foundation-level vulnerability assessment and ethical hacking with hands-on training and individual mentoring.

You might be a beginner in cybersecurity or require penetration testing expertise; a penetration testing course is a sensible start towards an ethical hacking career.