topic Re: ISSAP, ISSEP and ISSMP going away? in Member Support

ISSAP, ISSEP and ISSMP going away?

narcling — Wed, 13 Dec 2017 17:03:21 GMT

I was trying to find a boot camp for the CISSP-ISSMP certification and was told by an ISC2 training partner that the CISSP concentration certifications were going away.

Is it true that ISC2 is abandoning the ISSEP, ISSAP and ISSMP?

Re: ISSAP, ISSEP and ISSMP going away?

Kaity — Wed, 13 Dec 2017 20:20:53 GMT

I can assure you that's not the case. Absolutely no plans to get rid of the CISSP concentrations.

Can you let me know which partner told you that so that we can correct them? You can message me the info if you'd like.

Thanks so much!

Re: ISSAP, ISSEP and ISSMP going away?

Badfilemagic — Wed, 13 Dec 2017 23:52:40 GMT

I just registered to take ISSEP in May, so I hope its not going away.

Re: ISSAP, ISSEP and ISSMP going away?

Kaity — Thu, 14 Dec 2017 13:47:28 GMT

Nope, it's not going away 🙂

Re: ISSAP, ISSEP and ISSMP going away?

ChrisBoz — Thu, 11 Jan 2018 20:38:47 GMT

My issue is getting any training for it. New Horizons does not offer anything currently , Global Knowledge keeps rescheduling my class to a later date due to low enrollment, and Training Camp does not have anything to offer.

It seems the books available are outdated, I am curious to what others recommend to study and prepare for the CISSP-ISSEP. Thank you in advance

Re: ISSAP, ISSEP and ISSMP going away?

Kaity — Thu, 11 Jan 2018 21:25:12 GMT

Hi Chris,

(ISC)² doesn't have any ISSEP training at the moment, but when we do, they can be found on this page (we update as they are scheduled):
https://enroll.isc2.org/catalog?pagename=issep-training

In the mean time, you could check out Training Camp - they're an (ISC)² preferred Official Training Partner. They seem to have an ISSEP bootcamp right now -
http://www.trainingcamp.com/global/training/issep-certification-bootcamp.aspx?refer=google&keyword=issep%20training&gclid=Cj0KCQiAs9zSBRC5ARIsAFMtUXFo8NSASeTvircLtulp9uaNGZvu-_E1-nfRUgA0i_7vKffT3iMohFEaAt0sEALw_wcB

Re: ISSAP, ISSEP and ISSMP going away?

Badfilemagic — Fri, 12 Jan 2018 01:14:53 GMT

I have a ZIP file I just posted here: https://www.weaponizedawesome.com/ISSEP_resources.zip

It contains the following PDFs:

SP800-30r1
SP800-37r1
SP800-53r4
SP800-64r2
SP800-88r1
SP800-100
SP800-115
SP800-160
DoD's Systems Engineering Fundamentals (SEF) Guide

I collected these based on the supplemental reading suggestions on the (ISC)2 website. Also, The INCOSE Systems Engineering Handbook, which I got for Kindle, and the flash cards from the (ISC)2 website.

Anyone else have anything they're using for this?

Re: ISSAP, ISSEP and ISSMP going away?

RA20 — Tue, 20 Mar 2018 00:35:54 GMT

It does seem that the add-on certifications are being restructured but it's not clear why the relevant training materials are not available either on ISC2.org or at partner sites.

https://www.isc2.org/Certifications/CISSP-Concentrations/ISSMP-Domain-Change-FAQs

From what I've learned, the content of the exam is now different. No formal training materials are available at this time. Online training is said to be available in May 2018.

A training partner I contacted has discontinued their course that covers ISSMP, so I can also reiterate that there's a perception that the certification is going away.

Re: ISSAP, ISSEP and ISSMP going away?

Zonker — Sun, 25 Mar 2018 15:54:58 GMT

This has been a concern of mine for the last couple of years. My ISSEP training in 2016 was cancelled because we were told that ISC2 was revamping the ISSAP, ISSEP and ISSMP courses and exams. Last year, the ISSEP training camp I registered for was cancelled and the partner has not run any since either. This year, I saw that ISC2 had listed a camp in the DC area for June, but when I tried to register, I was told that this was a mistake. I was also informed that the actual test changed on March 15 (2018), but that new training materials have not been published yet. For the ISSEP I know that the domains have changed from 4 to 5, but that is about all I can find out. All I can say is to keep watching the ISC2 pages for any changes. I am guessing that when they publish the new guides we can move forward again.

Re: ISSAP, ISSEP and ISSMP going away?

ChrisBoz — Wed, 28 Mar 2018 16:34:41 GMT

I can tell you that ISC2 is testing on the new 5 domain layout for ISSEP as I found out the hard way yesterday. I had an instructor tell me during my prep course that ISC2 was not changing the exam (even though there was a scheduled date) until they released new training material. Well I followed his advice and only studied for the old 4 domain structure and fell short when I tested yesterday, although I came super close which is encouraging. So for anyone who is planning to test, know the 5 domains and you can forget about stuff like the Federal regulations domain which is a thing of the past. I will study the new areas and plan to test in about 45 days.

Re: ISSAP, ISSEP and ISSMP going away?

Beads — Thu, 29 Mar 2018 16:50:23 GMT

There never has been a great deal of traction surrounding these exams which has over the years only lead to confusion and as you can read from the above comments, speculation.

I took the ISSAP simply to stand out among CISSPs.

Re: ISSAP, ISSEP and ISSMP going away?

kurtholz — Thu, 19 Apr 2018 16:44:58 GMT

Hi Brent, I used the same reasoning when going for my ISSAP...to stand out a bit amongst the crowd. And aside from qualifying me for IASAE Level III, I don't see much desire for this certification among industry partners. The ISSEP certification seems to make more sense within the ISSE realm but as far as job searches and level of the job (i.e. ISSE with the cert vs ISSM or ISSO without), I haven't come across anyone requiring (or wanting) the ISSAP certification.

Being qualified for IASAE Level III is nothing to sneeze at, but that's only within certain environments. Outside of Government work in the US, IASAE Level III means nothing.

All said and done, I'm still glad I went for the ISSAP...just wish more companies knew about it!

Kurt Holz, CISSP-ISSAP

Re: ISSAP, ISSEP and ISSMP going away?

Steve-Wilme — Wed, 25 Apr 2018 12:28:13 GMT

As a ISSAP and ISSMP the best way to prepare is to get the official text and ensure that you have also read the majority of the references (most are in the public domain) at the end of the chapters. You may find if you've worked in InfoSec any length of time that you already have some of the text books, standards etc. Many of the references are to NIST SP800, RFCs, ISO standards etc, which you'll probably have read at some point.

I would consider self study rather than looking for a boot camp. You simply need the self discipline to get up early and work at it all day, sleep, get up and do the same.

Re: ISSAP, ISSEP and ISSMP going away?

SOSUSA — Mon, 07 May 2018 19:05:15 GMT

Sorry to hear that u had fell short. I am preparing for ISSEP and taking it by end of June. Focusing on all the 5 domains (and not planning to read any of the regulatory, Common Criteria stuff), primarily using the public documents listed in the references list, flash cards seems like still has the information from old domains. Best of luck!

Re: ISSAP, ISSEP and ISSMP going away?

SOSUSA — Mon, 07 May 2018 19:12:02 GMT

I am pretty much using the same documents, and planning to read the old CBK book, which is still applicable for couple of domains. Planning to take the exam by end of next month. Did you find flash cards useful, as it still has information related to old domains. Good luck to you.

Re: ISSAP, ISSEP and ISSMP going away?

Baechle — Mon, 07 May 2018 21:25:54 GMT

Sankar,

@SOSUSAwrote:
Sorry to hear that u had fell short. I am preparing for ISSEP and taking it by end of June. Focusing on all the 5 domains (and not planning to read any of the regulatory, Common Criteria stuff), primarily using the public documents listed in the references list, flash cards seems like still has the information from old domains. Best of luck!

From my memory of the exam, leaving out knowing (being able to nearly recite the content nearly verbatim and its source document) of the regulatory information would be a serious mistake. I’m not sure if you said this because you work with it so regularly that you don’t feel the need to study, or you think that it isn’t a relevant portion of the exam.

Sincerely,

Eric B.

Re: ISSAP, ISSEP and ISSMP going away?

Baechle — Mon, 07 May 2018 21:33:10 GMT

@Steve-Wilmewrote:
As a ISSAP and ISSMP the best way to prepare is to get the official text and ensure that you have also read the majority of the references (most are in the public domain) at the end of the chapters. You may find if you've worked in InfoSec any length of time that you already have some of the text books, standards etc. Many of the references are to NIST SP800, RFCs, ISO standards etc, which you'll probably have read at some point.

I would consider self study rather than looking for a boot camp. You simply need the self discipline to get up early and work at it all day, sleep, get up and do the same.

I wholeheartedly agree with Steven.

Even more than the CISSP, these concentrations are deep dives into work roles. If you do not currently do these work roles on a daily basis that would expose you to either the processes or regulations that these exams cover, you will not likely be in a good position to pass.

You will likely need to commit significant time to working with flash cards and taking scenario based practice exams if you don’t currently work in all of the domains for the work role you’re testing for.

Sincerely,

Eric B.

Re: ISSAP, ISSEP and ISSMP going away?

SOSUSA — Mon, 07 May 2018 21:57:04 GMT

Eric,

Couple of domains were dropped and new topics have been included.(refer https://www.isc2.org/-/media/ISC2/Certifications/Exam-Outlines/ISSEP-Exam-Outline-v1204---March-2018-Final.ashx).

Here is a thread from ChrisBoz** about the changes.

Hope this helps...

Best,

Sankar

Re: ISSAP, ISSEP and ISSMP going away?

Baechle — Mon, 07 May 2018 21:58:23 GMT

William,

It looks like you’re missing several NIST/CSRC Special Publications and all of the DoD references besides the “SEF Guide”. You may want to revisit DoD references on “Operational Risk Management” as an overlay to the Risk Management Domain, and then apply them to the IT environment. There are some CBT courses available from the Defense Security Services SPeD program that should fill some gaps in concepts like IT Supply Chain Management with knowledge and input from the Counterintelligence world. I don’t know if these are open to the public or if you have to be affiliated with government. It also couldn’t hurt to lean on the CompTIA IT Project+ materials for the project management objectives.

Sincerely,

Eric B.

Re: ISSAP, ISSEP and ISSMP going away?

Baechle — Mon, 07 May 2018 22:11:36 GMT

Sankar,

@SOSUSAwrote:
So for anyone who is planning to test, know the 5 domains and you can forget about stuff like the Federal regulations domain which is a thing of the past. I will study the new areas and plan to test in about 45 days.

I would like to know from any of you who take the test soon, if not knowing the content of these pubs holds true.

For example, even if not knowing “SP 800-37” is the regulation for the “Risk Management Framework”, the framework itself contained in this pub is the basis for several exam Objectives from what I can see in the March 2018 Exam Outline. U.S. Government published Operational Risk Management manual, or “ORM” form the basis of nearly every Risk Management process I’ve seen related to IT engineering risk regardless of if it were public or proprietary.

Ridding the exam of a regulation mapping domain may make it unnecessary to quote which publication a concept came from, but I am wagering that many of the questions on the current exam were adopted directly from these pubs.

Sincerely,

Eric B.