OffSec Celebrates 20 Years of Practitioner-Built Training From the Creators of Kali Linux and OSCP

In 2006, OffSec emerged from the security community, founded by practitioners who believed hands-on experience was the best way to teach cybersecurity. This philosophy remains central to OffSec's approach today, as they deliver critical thinking, cyber-warrior skills, and problem-solving abilities to their learners.

The company began with BackTrack Linux, which later evolved into Kali Linux, a free platform for penetration testing, research, forensics, and reverse engineering. Kali Purple extended Kali's capabilities to defenders. OffSec's gold standard certification, OSCP, tests candidates against live systems, demonstrating real-world capability. In 2024, OSCP+ introduced a renewable credential.

Since 2009, OffSec has maintained an Exploit Database, a non-profit archive of public exploits, PoC code, shellcode, and security papers. The company also acquired the open-source training project VulnHub and launched Proving Grounds Play, offering free labs. Recently, they added HackTrack, a live weekly training program with a new OSAI focus on the horizon.

Try Harder has become synonymous with the persistence and dedication required in cybersecurity. CEO Ning Wang emphasizes the importance of continuous, hands-on skill development to keep up with the rapid evolution of AI-powered attacks. To meet this challenge, OffSec focuses on AI literacy for both red and blue teams, integrating AI into their training programs.