API Penetration Testing Course & ASCP Certification Review
AppleTree's detailed review of APISec University's API Penetration Testing course and API Security Certified Professional (ASCP) exam.
API Penetration Testing & ASCP Certification Review
Overview
APISec University focuses specifically on API security training, providing a clear and practical path into offensive API testing. Their API Penetration Testing course establishes the foundational concepts and techniques necessary to understand modern API attack surfaces, while the API Security Certified Professional (ASCP) exam evaluates the ability to apply those skills in a hands-on, time-boxed environment.
This certification track centers on realistic API flaws aligned with the OWASP API Security Top 10. Both the course and exam are designed to develop a strong understanding of how APIs can fail at the architectural, logic, and authorization layers.
This review is based on the course and exam as of November 2025.
Course Overview
The API Penetration Testing course is a self-paced program offering over 12 hours of instructor-led content, supported by guided demonstrations and hands-on exercises using vulnerable API platforms such as crAPI and vAPI. These environments are used throughout the course to practice reconnaissance, endpoint analysis, injection, exploitation, and logic abuse in realistic API-driven systems.
Delivery & Format
- Length: 12+ hours of structured instruction
- Mode: On-demand video content with demonstrations
- Labs: Hands-on vulnerable API environments (crAPI and vAPI)
- Audience: Security professionals, developers, and defenders working with API-driven systems
Module Structure
The course presents a full life cycle of API assessment:
Introduction & Lab Setup Preparing the local environment and deploying crAPI/vAPI for hands-on testing.
API Reconnaissance Discovering APIs, analyzing traffic, and mapping endpoints.
Endpoint Analysis Identifying excessive data exposure, object reference misuse, and business logic weaknesses.
Scanning APIs Detecting misconfigurations and structural issues.
API Authentication Attacks Testing password resets, brute force paths, credential spraying, and MFA-related weaknesses.
Authorization Exploitation (BOLA) Evaluating object-level access control, role validation, and privilege checks.
Improper Assets Management Finding deprecated versions, shadow routes, and unmanaged endpoints.
Mass Assignment Manipulating JSON bodies, adding attributes, and bypassing server-side validation.
Injection Attacks SQL, NoSQL, and XSS vectors within API contexts.
Rate Limit Testing Exploring brute force protection and resource exhaustion.
Combining Tools & Techniques Integrating multiple approaches for complex scenarios.
The combination of structured instruction and real labs makes the course highly applicable to the ASCP exam format.
Exam Overview
The API Security Certified Professional (ASCP) exam is a practical certification designed to validate the ability to perform a real API penetration test within a controlled, time-limited environment.
Format & Structure
- Duration: 12 hours
- Environment: Two intentionally vulnerable API applications
- Objectives: Discover APIs, enumerate endpoints, identify vulnerabilities, exploit weaknesses, and report findings
- Cost: $450 USD
- Retake: One free retake included
- Focus Areas: Weaknesses such as Broken Authentication, Broken Object Level Authorization (BOLA), Mass Assignment, and other OWASP API Security Top 10–style logic and design flaws
- Intended Candidates: Penetration testers, developers, bug bounty hunters, and defenders who work with API ecosystems
The exam emphasizes enumeration, careful inspection of object relationships, understanding of authorization flows, and thoughtful manipulation of JSON-based requests.
Who This Certification Is For & Recommended Background
This certification fits well for individuals working with or testing API-driven systems and those who want a practical introduction to API-specific offensive security.
It is particularly suited for:
- Web pentesters expanding into API-focused engagements
- Security professionals assessing modern application architectures
- Developers and DevOps engineers responsible for API development
- Defenders analyzing API weaknesses from an attacker’s perspective
- Learners preparing for more advanced offensive or cloud/API certifications
Recommended background includes:
- Familiarity with HTTP/JSON and RESTful design
- Experience with tooling such as Burp Suite, Postman/Insomnia, curl, or similar
- Understanding of authentication and authorization concepts
- Ability to enumerate endpoints and analyze object-level relationships
- General awareness of the OWASP API Security Top 10
Recommendations to Prepare for the Exam
The most important preparation step for the ASCP exam is completing the API Penetration Testing course. The content aligns directly with the types of vulnerabilities present in the exam environment, and the demonstrations provide a strong foundation for understanding how APIs are typically abused.
Additional preparation helps reinforce practical skills when facing unfamiliar or complex API workflows.
Recommended steps include:
Complete the official course This provides the core concepts needed to solve the exam’s challenges.
Practice on vulnerable API platforms crAPI, vAPI, and similar systems reinforce real-world attack patterns.
Use PortSwigger’s API-focused labs These support hands-on practice in authorization bypass, object-level access control, and API logic flaws.
Strengthen JSON manipulation skills Adjusting fields, adding attributes, and modifying identifiers is central to several categories of API exploits.
Review API authorization patterns Understanding the expected behavior of roles, tokens, and object IDs is essential.
Develop a consistent testing workflow Organized tooling improves efficiency during the exam window.
Utilize the full 12-hour window The time limit allows for thorough exploration and careful validation prior to exploitation.
Strengths
- Strong alignment with real-world API vulnerabilities
- Practical, hands-on exam emphasizing methodology and reasoning
- Cohesive progression from course to certification
- Excellent value relative to cost and scope
- Realistic flaws focused on logic and design issues
- Hands-on practice with vulnerable API environments (crAPI and vAPI)
Limitations
- The exam includes only two applications, limiting architectural variety
- Not intended for advanced exploit development or multi-stage chaining
- Limited emphasis on post-exploitation depth
- Some flags require deeper enumeration to uncover subtle issues
Comparison Table — Courses
| Course | Provider | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| API Penetration Testing | APISec University | Included with free APISec University account | Offensive API pentesting; uses crAPI/vAPI |
| WEB-200: Foundational Web Application Assessments with Kali Linux | Offensive Security | $1,749 | Hands-on web app pentesting; prepares for OSWA |
| SEC522: Application Security – Securing Web Applications, APIs, and Microservices | SANS Institute | $8,780 | Broad web & API testing; includes microservices |
| Practical Web Application Security & Pentesting (PWASP) – Course | TCM Security | $30/mo or $300/yr | Practical web pentest course; beginner-friendly |
| INE Web Application Penetration Testing Course | INE/eLearnSecurity | $59/mo, $300/yr, or $750/yr premium | Practical web pentesting course leading to eWPT |
| PortSwigger Web Security Academy – API and Web Labs | PortSwigger | Free | Interactive API and web exploitation labs |
| OWASP API Security Labs (crAPI, vAPI, etc.) | OWASP | Free | Practice environments covering API exploitation |
Comparison Table — Certifications
| Certification | Provider | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| ASCP – API Security Certified Professional | APISec University | $450 | Practical API pentest exam; 12-hour window |
| OSWA – OffSec Web Assessor | Offensive Security | $1,749 | Certification exam for WEB-200 |
| GWEB – GIAC Web Application Defender | GIAC/SANS | $999 | Defensive web & API security certification |
| PWPA – Practical Web Pentest Associate | TCM Security | $249 | Entry-level web pentesting certification |
| PWPP – Practical Web Pentest Professional | TCM Security | $499 | Intermediate web pentesting exam |
| PWPE – Practical Web Pentest Expert | TCM Security | $799 | Advanced web pentester certification |
| eWPT – Web Application Penetration Tester | INE/eLearnSecurity | $599 | Practical web application pentesting certification |
| eWPTX – Web Application Penetration Tester eXtreme | INE/eLearnSecurity | $599 | Advanced web exploitation certification |
Final Ratings
| Category | Rating |
|---|---|
| Knowledge Depth | ★★★★★★★☆☆☆ (7 / 10) |
| Real-World Applicability | ★★★★★★★★☆☆ (8 / 10) |
| Value for Cost | ★★★★★★★★★★ (10 / 10) |
| Study Requirements | ★★★★★★☆☆☆☆ (6 / 10) |
| Industry Relevance & Accessibility | ★★★★★★★★☆☆ (8 / 10) |
Overall Score: 8.2 / 10
Final Thoughts
The API Penetration Testing course and ASCP exam offer a structured, practical introduction to offensive API security. The course provides comprehensive coverage of modern API attack techniques and reinforces them through hands-on use of crAPI and vAPI, while the exam delivers a realistic and methodical 12-hour assessment focused on modern API vulnerabilities.
Although additional architectural variety and deeper multi-stage exploitation would further expand the learning experience, the certification stands out as a highly valuable and cost-effective option for anyone working with or assessing API-driven systems.
Note: AI-assisted editing was used to improve grammar, clarity, and formatting. All technical content and opinions are original.