Red Team Member

Part of the Cybersecurity Career Guide — This article is one deep-dive in our complete guide series.

By HADESS Team | February 28, 2026 | Updated: February 28, 2026 | 5 min read

You simulate real adversaries. Unlike penetration testers who work from a checklist against a defined scope, you operate with stealth, persistence, and the same tactics actual threat groups use. Your goal is to test an organization’s detection and response capabilities — not just their technical defenses.

What You Will Do

Red team engagements are longer, more complex, and more realistic than standard pentests. You may spend weeks or months inside an environment, mimicking APT behavior to see if the blue team can catch you.

Day-to-day work includes:

• Developing phishing campaigns and social engineering pretexts
• Building custom command-and-control (C2) infrastructure
• Writing or modifying malware and implants to bypass EDR and AV
• Performing initial access through phishing, external exploitation, or physical access
• Moving laterally through Active Directory environments
• Escalating privileges from standard user to domain admin (or beyond)
• Maintaining persistent access without triggering alerts
• Exfiltrating data to demonstrate real-world impact
• Collaborating with purple team exercises to improve detection
• Briefing executive leadership on engagement outcomes

You work closely with the blue team after engagements, helping them build detections for the TTPs you used. The point is not just to “win” — it is to make the organization harder to attack.

Skills You Need

Red teaming requires deep technical skills across multiple domains plus the ability to think strategically about attack campaigns.

Build these capabilities:

• Active Directory attacks — the core battleground in enterprise environments
• Malware development and evasion — C, C++, C#, or Rust for custom tooling
• Command and control frameworks — Cobalt Strike, Sliver, Havoc, Mythic
• Social engineering — phishing, pretexting, vishing
• Network evasion techniques — tunneling, proxy chains, DNS over HTTPS
• OPSEC and tradecraft — staying undetected during long engagements
• Threat intelligence — understanding how real adversaries operate (MITRE ATT&CK)
• Windows internals — process injection, token manipulation, ETW evasion

Map these skills in the skills library and trace career progression in the career path explorer.

Certifications

Red team certifications are heavily practical. The ones that carry weight:

• CRTO — Certified Red Team Operator, Cobalt Strike-focused, practical exam
• CRTE — Certified Red Team Expert, Active Directory attack chains
• ECPTX — eLearnSecurity advanced penetration testing
• EWPTX — advanced web application attacks for red team scenarios
• OSWE — web application source code review and exploitation

Build your cert plan with the certification roadmap planner.

Salary Range

Red team members earn between $19K and $156K. The lower end reflects junior roles or lower-cost markets. Experienced operators with custom tooling skills and a track record of successful engagements earn at the top. Consultancy roles and adversary simulation leads can push past the upper range.

Benchmark your market value with the salary calculator.

How to Get Started

1. Master penetration testing first — red teaming builds on top of solid pentest fundamentals 2. Learn Active Directory inside and out — set up a lab with domain controllers, trusts, and GPOs 3. Take the skills assessment to identify what you already know and what is missing 4. Practice C2 frameworks in isolated lab environments available in the workspace 5. Study MITRE ATT&CK — understand real adversary TTPs and map your skills against them 6. Learn malware development basics — start with simple C# implants and EDR evasion 7. Get CRTO or CRTE — plan it out with the certification planner 8. Build your profile with the resume builder emphasizing offensive operations 9. Search for red team roles on the job board

Red teaming is not an entry-level role. If you are earlier in your career, talk to the career coach about building the right foundation first.

Related Guides in This Series

• Application Penetration Tester: Go Beyond the Web Layer — HADESS | 2026
• Bug Bounty Hunter: Get Paid to Find Real Vulnerabilities — HADESS | 2026
• Exploit Developer: Turn Vulnerabilities into Working Code — HADESS | 2026

Take the Next Step

Start your career assessment. Go to the start your career assessment on HADESS.

Explore career paths. Check out the explore career paths.

Get started free — Create your HADESS account and access all career tools.

Frequently Asked Questions

What certifications do I need for this role?

Certification requirements vary by employer and seniority level. Use the certification roadmap planner to build a sequence based on your target role and current qualifications.

What is the salary range for this role?

Salaries vary significantly by location, experience, and employer type. Use the salary calculator for your specific market rate.

How do I transition into this career path?

Take the skills assessment to identify your current strengths and gaps relative to this role. The assessment generates a personalized learning plan to close the gap.

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HADESS Team consists of cybersecurity practitioners, hiring managers, and career strategists who have collectively spent 50+ years in the field.