TCM Security · Intermediate · A five-day hands-on engagement against a simulated corporate network — OSINT, external attack surface, internal foothold, Active Directory compromise to domain controller — followed by two days to write a professional report and then a live debrief in which you present your findings to a TCM Security assessor. Vouchers have historically included one free retake.

PNPT — Practical Network Penetration Tester

PNPT is TCM Security’s full-engagement penetration testing certification. Rather than a points race, it simulates a real assessment: reconnaissance, external entry, Active Directory compromise, a client-quality report and a live debrief where you defend your findings. It is the closest any affordable certification comes to reproducing what a junior consultant actually does.

Last updated: 6 August 2026

The facts

Vendor	TCM Security
Level	Intermediate
Format	A five-day hands-on engagement against a simulated corporate network — OSINT, external attack surface, internal foothold, Active Directory compromise to domain controller — followed by two days to write a professional report and then a live debrief in which you present your findings to a TCM Security assessor. Vouchers have historically included one free retake.
Cost	Low-to-mid band and widely considered strong value; a fraction of an OSCP attempt. TCM sells the exam voucher separately from its training courses, with course bundles and student discounts available. Retake policy and bundle contents change, so confirm current pricing and what is included on TCM Security’s certification site.
Validity / renewal	TCM has historically not run a CPE treadmill for PNPT in the way CompTIA or ISC2 do, but renewal policy has been revised in the past and is not something to assume. Check TCM Security’s current certification maintenance page before relying on it being lifetime.
Prerequisites	None enforced. TCM sells preparatory courses but does not require them. Realistically you need working knowledge of Linux, networking, basic web attacks and, critically, Active Directory attack paths, plus the willingness to write a genuine professional report — that part fails more candidates than the hacking does.

Vendors revise prices, formats and eligibility. Always confirm on the vendor's own site before you pay — including against this page.

Is it worth it?

PNPT proves you can run an engagement end to end and communicate it, which is what a consultancy actually sells. The live debrief is unique among certifications and forces the client-facing skill most technical candidates lack. In India it is gaining respect among practitioners and boutique VAPT firms, and the Active Directory focus matches what corporate networks really look like.

The downside

Recognition is the weak point: many Indian HR systems and large-firm recruiters do not know TCM Security, so PNPT can be invisible at the screening stage where CEH or OSCP would pass. Five days plus reporting is a serious time commitment, and the debrief intimidates candidates who are technically fine but uncomfortable presenting.

Compared to

Versus	Verdict
OSCP	PNPT is cheaper, longer, more realistic and includes a debrief; OSCP is harder under time pressure and vastly better recognised by employers and recruiting software. As learning, many practitioners prefer PNPT. As a job-market signal in India, OSCP still wins.
eJPT	eJPT is the level below and a sensible warm-up. eJPT proves basic exploitation; PNPT proves you can chain OSINT to domain admin and write it up. Doing eJPT first makes PNPT far less daunting.
CEH	PNPT teaches and proves incomparably more; CEH is recognised incomparably more in Indian job listings and tenders. If you can afford both over time, take PNPT for skill and CEH for the filter.

Where we fit

Our training covers foundations that PNPT builds on — enumeration, exploitation, web attacks and especially report writing discipline — and we recommend PNPT to students who want engagement-style experience without OSCP pricing. We do not issue PNPT, we are not a TCM Security partner or reseller, and we do not sell vouchers or their courses. Amit Kumar holds CEH and CRTA.

We issue no vendor certification and resell no exam vouchers. Buy from the vendor.

PNPT — FAQs

How long is the PNPT exam?

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Five full days for the hands-on assessment, then two additional days to write a professional penetration test report, then a scheduled live debrief where you present your findings to a TCM Security assessor as if they were the client.

Is PNPT easier than OSCP?

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The time pressure is far gentler — five days against roughly 24 hours — but the scope is realistic and the report and debrief are graded seriously. Technically many find PNPT more approachable; professionally it demands communication skills OSCP never tests.

Do Indian employers recognise PNPT?

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Practitioners and boutique VAPT firms increasingly do; large-company HR filters and job portals often do not. Treat PNPT as something that wins the technical interview rather than something that gets you into it, and pair it with a more recognised name if screening is your bottleneck.

PNPT ka debrief kya hota hai?

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Exam ke baad TCM ke ek senior pentester ke saath live call hoti hai jismein aapko apni findings client ki tarah samjhani hoti hain. Ye hi PNPT ki khaas baat hai — sirf hacking nahi, samjhana bhi aana chahiye, jo asli consulting job mein roz karna padta hai.

Not sure if PNPT is the right next step?

Free call. If the honest answer is a cheaper certification, or six more months of lab work before you pay anyone, that is what you will hear.

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