Red Team Operator Course

I completed the Red Team Operator course on May 13, 2024. The course focused on the Marine Corps approach to red teaming and offensive operations, emphasizing disciplined tradecraft and operational thinking rather than isolated lab challenges.

The training went beyond platforms like Hack The Box and TryHackMe. Those tools build technical skills, but this course focused on how red teams actually operate: planning, execution, adaptation, and post-exploitation decision-making.

We covered exploitation techniques, target assessment, and chaining access in realistic environments. The emphasis was not on single exploits, but on using judgment—when to push deeper, when to pivot, and how to maintain momentum during an operation.

The final exercise was a full offensive scenario involving multiple machines. It required applying exploit development, exploitation, and lateral movement skills under time pressure. The exercise was intense, practical, and enjoyable.

I learned a great deal throughout the course and loved the process. The experience reinforced that red teaming is as much about mindset and execution as it is about technical capability.