topic Getting CISSP Certified in Exam Preparation

Getting CISSP Certified

Roger — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 08:19:45 GMT

I'm now embarking on my CISSP CERTIFICATION journey and I've decided to go in for CompTia Security+ CERTIFICATION first in order to understand the basic concepts of security and work with it for more experience. Any recommendations please.

Re: Getting CISSP Certified

ITGuy — Sun, 29 Oct 2017 13:27:46 GMT

Roger,

I'd highly recommend Professor Messer for your Security+ studies. His material is spot on and, best of all, free.

https://www.professormesser.com/security-plus/sy0-401/sy0-401-course-index/

You can sign up for a YouTube Red trial membership (3-months) and it will allow you to cache the videos in the YouTube app for offline playback. The link above is his site; the two below are the playlists for his videos directly on YouTube.

CompTIA Security+ SY0-401 Certification Course - Playlist 1 of 2: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLG49S3nxzAnkcKd71N4OjSv4cUXNhoPlQ

CompTIA Security+ SY0-401 Certification Course - Playlist 2 of 2: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLG49S3nxzAnlhMM1KV5ST1qi3kI87hMpY

I'd recommend Darril Gibson's book to accompany the videos. They compliment each other pretty well.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1939136024/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_zAD9zbMND23XN

If you provide some information on your background, I can recommend a study plan.

Ryan

Re: Getting CISSP Certified

Roger — Sun, 29 Oct 2017 13:31:15 GMT

Thanks very much for this much information.
What information would you need in order to provide me with the study plan?

Re: Getting CISSP Certified

ITGuy — Sun, 29 Oct 2017 13:44:01 GMT

Are you already doing IT or are you trying to breakout in the field? What formalised training have you had? How familiar are you with TCP/IP and the OSI model? That kind of stuff.

Re: Getting CISSP Certified

rksec — Sun, 29 Oct 2017 13:47:07 GMT

Attaining the Security+ cert is a good strategy as it helps you get acquainted with at least some of the security concepts and terminology you may find on the CISSP exam. I know a few folks that chose this same path.
Although I never sat for the Security+ exam, I did read some related material prior to studying for the CISSP. Good luck.

Re: Getting CISSP Certified

Roger — Sun, 29 Oct 2017 13:49:19 GMT

I've not attained any IT certificate yet but I have little insight about the stated areas. Pursing Diploma in Business IT....but I won't to specialize in Cyber security now.

Re: Getting CISSP Certified

Roger — Sun, 29 Oct 2017 13:50:32 GMT

Thank you. Much appreciated 😀

Re: Getting CISSP Certified

Bdrollinson — Sun, 29 Oct 2017 13:57:32 GMT

I am doing the same path as well. I am currently using study guides from a local technical institutions where I took courses for both (in Tampa, FL) along with Professor Messer videos. Studying for Sercurity+ helps with CISSP in long. Good luck to you Roger!

Re: Getting CISSP Certified

Roger — Sun, 29 Oct 2017 13:59:52 GMT

Thanks very much for your time and shared information......i'm really greatful.

Re: Getting CISSP Certified

ITGuy — Sun, 29 Oct 2017 13:59:53 GMT

I would advise going through the videos or reading the book the first time without taking notes. This is to get the content floating around in your head. Just read through regardless if you fully understand a topic or not.

Go back through a second time using both, this time taking notes and looking up any information you aren't grasping. So items, like subnetting, may require watching other videos or reading other sources before the bulb goes off. But, once it does, you'll be golden.

After the second round, start taking practice exams. The book provides a link to download some. Go through all the questions a few times and review the material that you miss.

Follow all this, and you'll be 90% there. The rest is test taking strategies in general.

Ryan

Re: Getting CISSP Certified

rjaldins — Sun, 29 Oct 2017 14:17:17 GMT

you better start soon , remember SY O41 will end on July 2018 , i recomended prepare for SY 051 , 🙂 good Luck !!!

Re: Getting CISSP Certified

Roger — Sun, 29 Oct 2017 14:21:41 GMT

Exactly what I was thinking.........

Re: Getting CISSP Certified

bwalker — Mon, 30 Oct 2017 11:36:30 GMT

Thanks for the reminder ITGuy. I viewed Prof Messer Security+ information a view months ago and forgot about it.

Re: Getting CISSP Certified

lorcan — Mon, 30 Oct 2017 13:39:02 GMT

The best instructor I've found so far, for both test topics and real world advice, is Mike Chapple on Lynda.com. Start with Insights from a Cybersecurity Professional, then move on to his Security+ Series and finally, his CISSP series. I have free access to Lynda through my employer, but if you don't and have the time and discipline, you can get the free 30 day trial and get through all the videos, saving your CISSP notes for when you're ready.

Another thing you can do is introduce yourself to the information security department and your own employer and those of friends and family. I guarantee the majority of them will offer help, to borrow books, study notes, give you a mock interview (or a real interview once you're ready).

I'd also recommend getting some general background info across all areas of IT. Pick up an introductory book on Python. It's a clean, simple language to learn and a lot of security tools are written in that language. Get Wireshark and capture packets on your own machine. Set up a VM environment for Kali Linux and Metasploitable (both free) and follow some labs. Make sure you read the instructions about how to set up the networking for the VMs so you don't accidentally use the Kali tools on the open network.

The most important advice is to learn something every day. Even if you spend only 15 minutes, keep the incremental progress going.

-Paul

Re: Getting CISSP Certified

Kbarrack — Mon, 30 Oct 2017 14:49:17 GMT

The primary difference Between the CISSP and Security+ Exams is scope. Security Plus is a yard wide and 200 yards deep. CISSP is 20 yards wide and 50 yards deep. Also, Security+ asks questions on topics that are outdated and there are usually a couple of questions, the answers to which, that cannot be found in any known literature. My advice is to get practice exams and go though then until you are confident in the material.

Re: Getting CISSP Certified

John — Mon, 30 Oct 2017 15:10:54 GMT

If you don't want a career in security, don't waste your time and money on a CISSP. The CompTIA Security+ is more than you'll need. Focus on project management and compliance. Project management will give you skills you'll use throughout your career. Compliance will make you an asset to your team on Day 1, especially with GDPR right around the corner.

The bigger question is: what do you want to do with your career? Are you new to the field? If so, find a path you like and get better acquainted with it. Networking? Network+, CCNA, JNCIA are all great. Development? Forget certs. Nobody uses them. Make projects that show you can do testing and documentation. Ops? Grab a VMWare and Microsoft cert. Even if it's security, the CISSP is what you get after a few years in the industry. I actually would find it a terrible way to enter the market.

Re: Getting CISSP Certified

dbohlmann — Fri, 10 Nov 2017 13:05:54 GMT

Though I've been a system engineer doing networks for a couple decades, I never had to time to get a cert. CISSP was my first one. I took a boot camp, studied hard during it (just do everything the instructor says), then waited a couple months to take the exam (usually not a good idea)... and still passed first time around.

But when they say it is a "mile wide and an inch deep", that's about the gist of it. There are ten domains of knowledge, half of which relate to IT or software... meaning the rest of them do not pertain to "IT security", basically. So certainly work on the COMPTIA cert, too (you will gain more in-depth knowledge), just be aware that you'd have about half of the CISSP domains covered. If you have the budget, I'd go with a bootcamp for CISSP training.