Field guide

BSCP Field Guide

A practical guide to preparing for and passing the Burp Suite Certified Practitioner. Less payload dump, more how to actually think, prepare, and not shoot yourself in the foot on exam day.

This is a preparation guide built from my own experience. It covers scope, methodology, tooling and exam-day logistics, and contains no exam content, in line with PortSwigger's rules. If you want my honest verdict on the certification itself, that's in the BSCP review.

  1. 01Scope: what the exam testsWhat the BSCP actually tests, and how to tell what's in scope before you waste time.→
  2. 02Study roadmapThe exact path I took: labs, mystery labs, practice exams, and the order that works.→
  3. 03Recognition playbookHow to spot which vulnerability you're looking at, fast. The skill the exam rewards.→
  4. 04Burp setupFive essential extensions, Pro vs Community, and a proxy that won't blow up on exam day.→
  5. 05Exam day: logistics & gotchasThe proctoring, the Burp meltdown, time management, and everything nobody warns you about.→
  6. 06Technique referenceA curated quick reference to jog your memory once you've recognised the bug.→