CRTO Cert Review

What is CRTO?

The Certified Red Team Operator (CRTO) course by Zero Point Security is one of the most well-regarded training programs for red teaming, offering a hands-on and realistic experience in adversary simulation.

Why Did I take CRTO?

I bought the course in preparation for OSEP but I did not touch it. One fine day during a school holiday, since I had already spent my own money to get the course, I thought I should complete it if not it will be a waste. Since my lab time had expired, I gotten 40 Hours of lab time.

Course Overview

This course allow you to deepen your knowledge on red teaming, AD exploitation and post-exploitation techniques. The course focuses more on assumed breach scenario in order to focus more on the AD exploitation and post-exploitation techniques.

Lab Environment

The best part of CRTO is the lab environment, which is designed to be as close to a real enterprise setup as possible. It includes multiple Windows systems, Active Directory, and real-world misconfigurations, making it a fantastic playground for testing red team tactics. I got the 40 Hours package which I feel is more than enough to understand the concepts taught in the course.

Exam

The exam is a 48 Hour Practical Exam where you have to compromise an AD environment and find 8 flags. You only need 6/8 flags to pass and be certified. There is no need to write a report which is great! Personally, I didn’t take long to get the 6 flags but I took my own sweet time finding the last 2 flags. It was a fun and enjoyable exam.

Pros & Cons

✅ Pros:

✔ Realistic red team training with an enterprise AD environment.
✔ Strong focus on Cobalt Strike, a widely used tool in red teaming.
✔ No report writing for certification, making the exam purely technical.
✔ Affordable compared to other offensive security courses like OSCP or CRTE.

❌ Cons:

✖ Focuses mainly on Cobalt Strike, not as tool-agnostic
✖ Labs can be overwhelming for beginners, it is better to have some experience with AD before taking this course as it is more focused on the red teaming aspect rather than Windows AD.

Should I take CRTO?

Absolutely, I had a blast taking it! Imo, the concepts and the labs were well put together. And of course, you get the chance to use Cobalt Strike and see how it is use for red teaming purposes. There is also a focus on OPSEC which allow you to think about OPSEC when you use certain methods, this is a quite a good way to intro the concept of red teaming and how it differs from pentesting. Also, it is more cheaper than generic pentesting certs like OSCP or CEH.

Final Verdict

CRTO is one of the best entry-level red teaming certifications, offering a realistic, hands-on, and well-structured learning experience. It’s highly recommended for penetration testers, red teamers, and security professionals who want to improve their Active Directory and C2 operation skills. If you’re aiming for real-world red team engagements, this certification is a great addition to your skillset.

🔥 Rating: 10/10 🔥