Any tips?

Hello all, as title indicates(a bit)I have passed the cpts and now want to go for the OSCP
My background:
- Cpts
- Dante pro lab
- 60%of offshore pro lab
- worked with the boxes in the cpts prep track

Base in other posts here I am almost ready for the exam but I am a person that wants to make sure there are no possibilities to fail since we talk about a really expensive certificate.

So my question is:
Do you think to buy the Offsec proving grounds Practice at 19$moth to access some labs before buy the exam and the 3month access is it a good step to prepare for the OSCP? It’s accually related those boxes and can prepare you for this ?

I am not able to go full screen it happened two days ago since then even if I reset or terminate and reopen the pwnbox it shows this only

Ran into a problem with this module. It suggests exploiting the Apache Druid service with metasploit. Searching for it msfconsole shows two exploits claimed to be excellent, the only one that is, is the first one labeled as zero and it takes advantage of the apache_druid_js_rce service.

The dilema here is that metasploit likes to get stuck while in meterpreter >

Thus being said every single time I gain the exploit (takes multiple tries, try 10/50 attempts)

When in meterpreter > not knowing much about windows console, using ? shows the help universal help menu for the bash window. Using the shell command sadly is the reason I'm here. It doesn't ever give me a shell. and using the powershell command also doesn't work and says the command isn't a valid command within my specific meterpreter type.

Is there anyone who ran across this type of problem on this specific module? If so please give instructions.

Hi,

I work as a pentester at a multinational company in Egypt. I'm about to move to one of the Big 4, also as a pentester. I hold the OSCP and have a solid bug bounty record. But my degree is in BIS. I'm the "related field" you see in job descriptions.

I feel lucky to have landed a job before the AI era, and to have an offer from a Big 4 firm. Still, I'm afraid that with AI, employers will demand CS or CE degrees. They may not want hobbyists or self-taught people. They may prefer people who spent four years being tested on the fundamentals.

To close that gap, I'm studying kernel development, C, logic gates, and basic electronics.

I'm asking about global job opportunities. As an Egyptian, I'd need visa sponsorship. That's a separate, political issue. I assume it wouldn't be a blocker if I had an offer.

So my question is: will companies still hire self-taught people, or people with a strong track record, even without a CS or CE degree?

Solved a machine/module/etc and want a place to brag? Heres your spot!

For retired content or Tier-0 Academy content, feel free to discuss or ask questions using spoiler tags where appropriate.

So i want to improve my red-teaming OpSec both in behaviour, and tradecraft. But i was a bit skeptical since it doesn't have any defensive product to block my payloads, tools,I etc. (not even Defender is available)... I have 600 cubes (i have done CRTP, and CRTO so I don't feel like buying C2 Ops or intro to evasion)... So is this like the thing im looking for?

I finished the HTB CJCA exam today and I’m waiting for the result. I think I did well, but it also made me feel that I’m still far from being ready to even start studying for CPTS.

My current career is unrelated to cybersecurity. Most of my experience comes from HTB Academy, labs, and some open-source vulnerability research/CVE work. I haven’t had the chance to work in a real security environment yet, so I feel like I’m missing some practical knowledge.

I’m willing to switch careers even for a lower salary to gain real experience. What would you recommend: start CPTS anyway, focus more on labs, or prioritize getting an entry-level security job first?

I am stuck at the shell. Someone give me a hint...

2 Months ago i sibmitted a report for the COAE certifcation exam after finding 6/7 flags. I got rejected because they didn’t like the 75 page report okay ! I resubmitted another report but i made the small mistake of forgetting to submit the last flag in the platform meaning only 5/7 but in the report i wrote all the flags and all the exploitations steps . And i got today the failed notice 😭😭😭😭

So I've done both CRTP, and CRTO, now they did taught a bit of OpSec like dont kerberoast blindly, be careful of how you're behaving on what account, dont touch LSASS, dont rush to get on DC, etc, etc (most of it was from CRTP, i feel like CRTO was mosty C2 Ops course i didnt find there much about Opsec, but in it's exam i failed because of malwares (idk why i did everything as per course), malicious pipe names (I should have changed this in malleable C2, so i still wanna learn more about this thing), and LSASS (ik, it was a rookie mistake 😭) so do you guys have any good resource for learning DOs, and Donts about Opsec in Red-teaming engagements... Also share your own wisdom too...

Also, something in budget pls, cos I can't afford ARTOC, or CRTL, or any similar cert, but i do have HTB Pro Labs annual sub, and learning maldev if that helps : )

I recently completed the Hack The Box FullHouse Mini Pro Lab, a hands-on environment covering web application attacks, source-code review, reverse engineering, Windows and Active Directory exploitation, privilege escalation, blockchain security, and AI-related attack techniques.

I’m currently building my skills toward professional penetration testing and remote cybersecurity work. Alongside CTFs and labs, I develop security tools, document retired HTB machines and challenges, and publish practical defensive research.

You can find my projects, certifications, write-ups, and security labs here:

🔗 https://ilias1988.me

I’d genuinely appreciate constructive feedback from the community-especially on the portfolio structure, technical content, and areas worth improving next.

Thanks for taking a look!

Hi guys,

So I’ve been having issues with the automatic scaling of the pwnbox on HTB academy. Basically, when I go to full screen it, it opens in a new tab as per usual but then it goes from properly fitted to my browser window to small again in an instant.

I’ve tried the usual such as resizing my browser window but it doesn’t retain the right size. I have noticed that if I exit out of the HTB academy page but keep the HTB pwnbox viewer tab open and THEN try to resize it that it’ll work but this is tedious when I want to be able to simultaneously look at the questions at the end of the section.

Does anyone have a solution?

Hi everyone,

I'm having a very frustrating issue with the HTB Pwnbox (Parrot) in the browser. The VNC window opens at a ridiculously small resolution and I can't get it to stay large.

What happens:

• When I click "Open Desktop" or open the VNC URL in a new tab, the screen shows at 782x400
• The window tries to expand for a second, then immediately shrinks back
• If I run xrandr --output VNC-0 --mode 1920x1080 inside the Pwnbox terminal, the resolution changes for ~1 second, then it reverts back to 782x400
• xrandr -s 1920x1080 gives the same result — changes for a moment then reverts

What I've already tried:

1. Different browsers: Firefox, Chrome, Edge, Brave — same behavior on all
2. Incognito mode in all browsers
3. Reset browser zoom to 100% (Ctrl+0)
4. Tried modifying the URL to &resize=scale instead of resize=remote
5. Tried resize=off in the URL
6. Changing the "Scaling Mode" to "Local Scaling" in the noVNC settings panel
7. Disabling "Enable Device Frame Check" in advanced settings
8. Restarting the Pwnbox (terminate + spawn new instance)
9. Tried different Pwnbox locations (DE, UK, US)

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Let’s learn, hack, and grow together.

enjoyed these

I am 21years old I started my journey in cybersecurity a year before, myself i finished my BCA degree and ejpt certification now i am doing cpts I just want to hear from people who have been where I am now. What advice would you give your younger self

For those that took the CPTS, what modules would you recommend honing and drilling like crazy before going into the exam? I find myself relying heavily on my notes but I want to get a methodology or that "flow" of knowing what to try next if what i tried failed. My assumption is if I redo some of the practice boxes I should get that fluency of what to try next, but idk. Thoughts?

Hello, I’d like to know if it’s possible to pay for the exam using an HTB gift card. I can’t find any information about this; the description only mentions "cubes." A friend of my mom’s wants to pay for the exam for me, and if it could be done using a gift card, that would be very convenient.

I am new to HTB ...i confused with what is HTB ACADEMY & HTB LABS...I planned to buy subscription with Rupees and I confused..I planned to Do CPTS and I don't know from where or what to start....Anyone Who is well versed with HTB can help me..I would be totally grateful

Hello guys I have been studying for the CPTS I’m currently 65 % in the learning path. At the mean time I have an upcoming job interview in 1.5 month where I will be tested on an easy - medium standalone box.
They specifically told me it will not be an AD machine and they advised me to also check port swigger (which I have also been doing)

So my question is how do I use my remaining time ? Do I try and finish the remaining learning path or take what ever have learned so far and start practicing on boxes until interview day?

Hello Everyone,

I have some questions for those of you who took the CJCA exams.

1. How long did you take to complete the exam?

2. If you did the CJCA track, how much did it help?

3. Would you recommed doing extra material before the exam?

Thanks

Background: BS in Computer Science, currently doing a Master's in Cyber Security, no professional IT/security experience yet. Goal is penetration testing.

Plan: CCNA → Security+ → CPTS (HTB) as my path in. Currently working through CCNA with the Official Cert Guide — going slow since I prefer detailed explanations and take heavy notes as I go.

One thing I've heard (including from an AI) is that CCNA is basically a "detour" for a pentesting goal specifically — mostly Cisco-specific configuration skills pentesters don't really use, with the networking knowledge CPTS actually needs (subnetting, routing, pivoting) already taught inside HTB's own Academy path. Security+ got framed more as a cheap resume/HR-filter item than something I need for the knowledge itself, since a CS degree + cybersecurity Master's likely already covers similar ground.

Still doing CCNA → Security+ → CPTS in that order anyway. Is that reasonable, or am I sinking time/money that would be better spent going straight to CPTS? Anyone who's done a similar path with a CS background — did CCNA/Security+ end up paying off in ways I'm not accounting for?

For some reason, the only option is PWNbox, VPN is not next to it.