Simplify Pentest Workflows Using Cerno - Chris Traynor
Are you reviewing findings or managing chaos?
🛝 Webcast Slides
https://www.blackhillsinfosec.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/SLIDES_Simplify-Pentest-Workflows-Using-Cerno.pdf
✏️ Learn from Chris Traynor with Offensive Tooling for Operators
https://www.antisyphontraining.com/product/offensive-tooling-for-operators-with-chris-traynor/
🔗 Register for FREE Infosec Webcasts, Anti-casts & Summits –
https://poweredbybhis.com
If you are a pentester, you have been there. Hundreds of findings. Critical vulns buried in noise. Too many terminal windows, lost context, and manual tracking slowing you down. On offensive work, time is everything, and disorganization wastes it fast.
Join us for a free one-hour webcast with Chris Traynor, Security Consultant at Black Hills Infosec, as he introduces Cerno, a new free and open-source tool designed to bring order to pentest findings.
Cerno is a Terminal User Interface tool that imports vulnerability data for structured review and validation. Navigate findings with keyboard shortcuts, launch tools with a single keystroke, track progress automatically, extract CVEs, look up related exploits, compare findings across hosts, and follow built-in or custom verification workflows.
You'll learn how to use Cerno to organize, review, and validate pentest findings faster, reduce chaos during engagements, and stay efficient under real-world time pressure.
Get familiar with Cerno: https://github.com/ridgebackinfosec/cerno
Chapters
Chat with your fellow attendees in the BHIS Discord server:
https://discord.gg/bhis
in the #🔴live-chat channel
🛝 Webcast Slides
https://www.blackhillsinfosec.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/SLIDES_Simplify-Pentest-Workflows-Using-Cerno.pdf
✏️ Learn from Chris Traynor with Offensive Tooling for Operators
https://www.antisyphontraining.com/product/offensive-tooling-for-operators-with-chris-traynor/
🔗 Register for FREE Infosec Webcasts, Anti-casts & Summits –
https://poweredbybhis.com
If you are a pentester, you have been there. Hundreds of findings. Critical vulns buried in noise. Too many terminal windows, lost context, and manual tracking slowing you down. On offensive work, time is everything, and disorganization wastes it fast.
Join us for a free one-hour webcast with Chris Traynor, Security Consultant at Black Hills Infosec, as he introduces Cerno, a new free and open-source tool designed to bring order to pentest findings.
Cerno is a Terminal User Interface tool that imports vulnerability data for structured review and validation. Navigate findings with keyboard shortcuts, launch tools with a single keystroke, track progress automatically, extract CVEs, look up related exploits, compare findings across hosts, and follow built-in or custom verification workflows.
You'll learn how to use Cerno to organize, review, and validate pentest findings faster, reduce chaos during engagements, and stay efficient under real-world time pressure.
Get familiar with Cerno: https://github.com/ridgebackinfosec/cerno
Chapters
- (00:00) - Intro – Simplify Pentest Workflows Using Cerno w/ Chris Traynor
- (06:03) - The Problem
- (10:55) - The Solution
- (13:14) - Feature Overview
- (16:37) - Database-First Design
- (17:17) - Module Architecture
- (18:11) - Data Flow
- (19:02) - Interactive TUI
- (21:16) - Severity Filtering
- (22:57) - Finding Review
- (25:09) - Tool Orchestration - nmap
- (27:35) - NetExec & Custom Tools
- (28:45) - NetExec DB [Beta]
- (30:22) - Host Comparison
- (32:40) - Session Persistence
- (34:23) - Configuration
- (36:22) - Demo Time
- (57:38) - Getting Started
- (57:49) - Resources
- (58:13) - Thank You / Free Labs
- (59:58) - CTF challenge
- (01:00:23) - Free Survival Guide - Spearphish General Store
- (01:00:42) - QA Start
- (01:10:16) - Taking Care of Business Related Plugs
Chat with your fellow attendees in the BHIS Discord server:
https://discord.gg/bhis
in the #🔴live-chat channel
Creators and Guests
Host
Deb Wigley
Deb Wigley is the Director of Kindness and Generosity for Black Hills Information Security (BHIS). She joined the team in 2019 after celebrating 20 years of working in customer engagement and satisfaction in the Automotive Industry. She brings her passion for helping and serving people to the work she does at BHIS. The part of her role she enjoys the most is interacting with the community through our webcasts and educational content, our Discord servers, and conferences. She loves being a mom to her four kiddos and in her spare time, she enjoys reading, hiking, frequently entertaining a beach day, and being whisked away on rewilding adventures with her husband of 20+ years as much as possible.
Host
Jason Blanchard
Jason Blanchard has been happily adopted into the hacker community at Black Hills Information Security (BHIS) since 2019, even though he “works in marketing.” He’s had every dream job imaginable: teaching filmmaking, owning the world’s most famous comic book store, and fostering the infosec community efforts for SANS. While some at BHIS call him the “Director of Excitement,” he is formally known as the Excitement Co-Creator. In his day-to-day work of “sucking at capitalism,” Jason enjoys helping others, sharing his knowledge, and giving away lots of free stuff. When he’s not working, Jason spends time with his wife and daughter, hosts a semiweekly job-hunting Twitch stream, and enjoys writing short stories and performing stand-up comedy.
Guest
Chris Traynor
Chris Traynor is a Security Consultant at Black Hills Information Security (BHIS), where he is responsible for Pentesting web apps, mobile app, APIs, and networks. He has also authored two cybersecurity classes (Offensive Tooling Foundations and Offensive Tooling for Operators) which he teaches via Antisyphon Training. Chris has nearly two decades of experience in Web/Mobile development, QA automation, and Penetration Testing. He thinks the best part of working at BHIS is being surrounded by some of the best minds in the industry (and getting paid to break stuff). When he’s not hard at work, Chris enjoys adventuring with his wife and daughters, exercising, and walking with his dog.
Guest
Logan Bender
Logan Bender joined Black Hills Information Security (BHIS) as a Business Consultant in September 2021. Previously working as a technology advisor, Logan now advises clients on BHIS’s services and provides recommendations for improving security posture. He is excited to be part of an organization that is so involved in providing quality security content to the community, and he loves the team and helpful culture at BHIS. When he’s not working, Logan can be found in the great outdoors — camping, fishing, hunting, golfing, or snowboarding.