I passed the CC Exam

[EncryptedNorway]

Today was a good day as I passed the ISC2 CC in Cybersecurity exam! I want to give out a few pointers for those that are still preparing to take this test!

1. ISC2's certified in cybersecurity course does NOT have everything to prepare you for the exam. It is a launching pad to get you started. 

2. Practice applying the concepts and not just rote memorization. Go outside the cybersecurity context with the concepts and it will help a lot. 

3. Have self-confidence and practice healthy habits! An exam can be worrisome, but as long as you study a couple hours a day, get a good night's rest, and have a drive, then you will go far! 

The resources I used mainly focused on getting used to the format of the test and understanding what test day feels like. 

1. ISC2 Certified in Cybersecurity course: Use it to learn basic terms and concepts. The course is very useful, but not comprehensive. 

2. Prabh Nair's CC in Cybersecurity series: Prabh has a playlist dedicated to the CC in Cybersecurity exam and in each video, he takes time to explain the answer to every question. All five domains are covered and the videos are a nice complement to the ISC2 course.

3. The LinkedIn Practice Exams: These are FREE and follow the same format as the test. There's four practice tests and I personally recommend that you take them once or twice a day. Do not marathon practice exams as they can lead to burnout. One final thing to note is that if you consistently score in the range of 80 to 90, then you're ready for the exam. 

4. Elizabeth Ekedoro's Crash Course in Cybersecurity: This is a condensed, but compact version of the ISC2 course. It offers a lot more information and even throws practice questions at you. Plus, you can find exam questions in the same Google Drive where you can access the Crash Course and it gives you explanations with each answer. Again, do not marathon the entire packet in one day!

5. ChatGPT: I want to point out that ChatGPT can make mistakes so be mindful with it. I asked it to give me practice quizzes and if I ran into a problem with Prabh Nair's videos or the practice exams, I would ask it to clarify why that answer was correct. ChatGPT is a useful tool for breaking terms or concepts down, but again it is prone to making mistakes.


These are the resources I used. Some people may have passed with the ISC2 course alone, but it would be wise to seek out other resources to make sure you are fully prepared. 

Maintain smart habits, pace yourself, and trust yourself. Everyone will achieve greatness!

[GabriellaLaPlac]

Ok. I looked for Elizabeth's stuff. I'm already using Prabh, Plus another teacher on Youtube . I think the channel is called Networks Decoded. Also, save some practice exams from CertPrep

[nkeaton]

@EncryptedNorway   Congratulations.  Thank you for details.  The important thing to remember though is that 25 questions are beta/pre-test questions and will probably not see anything in the training on those topics.  I definitely would not recommend using AI for answers; they will not follow the exam objectives.  I do not know about anything LinkedIn offers but would have the same concern.  If people know the exam objectives, they should be fine.  If not there are other resources available.  As suggested by ISC2:  isc2.org/certifications/references#Certified%20in%20Cybersecurity%20(CC)

[EncryptedNorway]

@GabriellaLaPlac Did you manage to find Elizabeth's resources? If not, this  should be what you're looking for. Prabh Nair's videos are fantastic and one way I used them was that before he answered the question, I would jot down the question in a Google Doc and make a guess as to what the answer is. If I got it right, then great! If I got it wrong, then I would write down Prabh's explanation and see where I messed up. I am not familiar with Networks Decoded, so I can't give out too much advice on them.

If you don't mind me asking, when are you taking the test? You got this!

[Kordyl]

Hello, I also passed the exam today. In fact, the course on the ISC2 website does not cover the entire material. I was lucky because I’ve been involved in IT security for some time, and thanks to knowledge from other sources I was able to answer questions that, in my opinion, were not addressed in the course. I’d add that the materials on YouTube by Prabh Nair are really helpful, and I think every candidate should go through his entire course.

[nkeaton]

@Kordyl   Congratulations.  Under the linear format, 25 of the questions are beta/pre-test.  So the exam that you took was adaptive?  Those 25 questions would be in the first 100.  I know that the CISSP is from 100 - 150 questions as an adaptive exam.  I will have to learn more about whether that is the same for the CC.  A very good start on your part.  I did volunteer for the pilot when ISC2 asked.  So I had a CISSP before the ELCC now CC.  I have a friend that did the same.  We both agreed that the CC is not an easy exam.  Fortunately we both passed, but for CISSPs to identify it as not easy is somewhat of a compliment.  

[GabriellaLaPlac]

Okay, thanks.

[gvs2025]

hi. can you share the link on linked inn for the practice question. any extra tip too thanks g

[Kordyl]

Honestly, I don't know if that exam was adaptive, but if it's really like you said, that part of the questions were "beta" and the answers were not counted in the score, that would explain a lot! xD Either way, I'm very glad to have it behind me. I also plan to do another course, but not from ISC2. This other course is from Cisco (CCST Security). Do you think it's worth it?

[nkeaton]

@Kordyl You are correct that those questions don’t count for or against you in the exam. I had a couple in the pilot that could tell were because not in the objectives. If you pass at 100 on an adaptive exam, you got 75 correct and made the algorithm happy. I am going to have to sit down and look at the changes in the exams. I know that the CISSP is 100 - 150 depending on how the algorithm judges your answers. I have some different ideas on vendor exams. I like vendor neutral ones for standard concepts and terminology. Cisco used to be the most common product, but there are definitely others out there now. We use 4 different products. All that being said, I do not think that there is a really good vendor neutral certification for networks. You can read Network+ but wouldn’t really recommend taking the exam. Cisco is still a major player and respected. Like any other vendor sometimes they add or invalidate certifications which can be frustrating to certification holders. Is networks what you want to work in?