Kubernetes Red Team Certification

The Kubernetes Red Team Professional (KRTP) is a hands-on Kubernetes red team certification, earned through the Kubernetes Attack and Defense bootcamp, an on-demand Pwned Labs program that goes deep on modern attack chains and the detections that catch them, then certifies you hands-on.

Kubernetes is often the platform red teamers understand least, which is exactly why attackers target it. The API server sits in front of a database, RBAC decides who can do what, and service account tokens and node identity quietly bridge the cluster to the cloud account behind it. Those mechanics create attack paths that go unnoticed. A Kubernetes red team certification should prove you can find and exploit them in a live cluster. The Kubernetes Red Team Professional (KRTP) is built to do that, hands-on.

What the KRTP certification proves

KRTP is a practical Kubernetes red team certification. There is no multiple choice section. You are assessed inside a live Kubernetes cluster with realistic misconfigurations and telemetry, and you have to enumerate the cluster, gain a foothold from a low-privilege pod, escalate to cluster-admin, escape to the node, and pivot into the cloud account to reach the objective. Passing means you demonstrated real tradecraft against real Kubernetes infrastructure, which is a credential an employer can trust.

Who this certification is for

KRTP fits penetration testers moving into cloud native, red teamers who need Kubernetes depth, and platform and cloud security engineers who want offensive understanding to strengthen their defenses. You do not need prior Kubernetes experience. The Kubernetes Attack and Defense bootcamp that leads into KRTP starts from fundamentals in minikube and progresses into RBAC escalation, container escape, and cloud identity abuse across EKS, GKE, and AKS, so a strong general security background is enough to start.

What you learn on the path to KRTP

The curriculum tracks how Kubernetes clusters are actually compromised rather than listing platform features. Core areas include:

• Cluster enumeration from an unauthenticated external position and from a low-privilege pod foothold.
• Analyzing service account tokens and RBAC to find verbs equivalent to cluster-admin, then escalating through RBAC misconfigurations.
• Escaping the container to the host node and dumping every secret in the cluster.
• Reaching the Instance Metadata Service from a pod and abusing IRSA, EKS Pod Identity, Fargate task credentials, and workload identity federation across EKS, GKE, and AKS.
• Establishing in-cluster and cloud-side persistence, weaponizing admission webhooks, and reading Kubernetes audit logs so you understand what defenders record while you operate.

Because the labs run in production-like clusters, you build the blue team awareness that distinguishes a Kubernetes red teamer from someone who only ran a script.

KRTP compared to other Kubernetes security certifications

The Certified Kubernetes Security Specialist (CKS) is a defensive, configuration-focused exam. It validates that you can harden and operate a secure cluster and is valuable for platform and engineering roles, but it does not ask you to attack one. Other offensive exams prove general penetration testing skill while covering little of the RBAC, container escape, and node identity abuse that defines Kubernetes compromise. KRTP fills that gap with a fully hands-on, offense-focused assessment specific to Kubernetes and the cloud accounts behind it.

How the KRTP exam works

The certification is assessed in a live Kubernetes cluster, not a simulation. You are given objectives and a time window and must accomplish them with real tradecraft against real services that are logging your activity. There is no memorization component. You reach the objectives or you do not, which makes the credential difficult to fake and easy for an employer to verify.

Inside the KRTP exam environment

The exam is a single realistic scenario, not a question bank. You get 24 hours and an entry point into a live Kubernetes cluster and the cloud account behind it, then build a complete exploitation chain from that foothold to the flag. The cluster, the misconfigurations, and the audit logging are all real.

It is self-contained and unproctored, so there is nothing external to bring and no screen recording. Because it is a chain rather than isolated tasks, partial knowledge shows, and there is no pentest report to write. You capture the flag or you do not, which makes the credential easy for a hiring manager to read.

Preparing for the KRTP exam

You do not need prior Kubernetes experience to start. What you do need is comfort on the Linux command line, the ability to read YAML and JSON, and a general security foundation. Familiarity with containers helps, but the bootcamp opens with fundamentals in minikube before moving into the advanced material, so the ramp is built into the path.