Security+

[Osiros]

So a co-worker and I had the opportunity to grab a free (paid for by employer) Security+ class. Having no problems with another cert under the belt (and again - no expense) I decided "why not". Had the first section tonight....good so far.

Anyway - everything I've read online about this one says it's nothing to sneeze at and is actually a pretty serious exam but my pre-test scores combined with the stuff I've seen researching it are making it seem fairly simple and not that intimidating....I'm not expecting a cake-walk but what I've seen so far makes me feel very confident.

So, I know that Sec+ is pretty entry level, especially given some of teh l33t in this crowd, but if you have any opinions or advice it's more than welcome. Is she a beast? Or will a solid background in networking get you most of the way there with supplemental information necessary just to fill in the gaps?

[Sabre]

I havent taken it, but I believe chuckles has. I can tell you that the CISSP is in very high demand right now.

[Mr Kleen]

If you study you should be OK. 2 coworkers took a Sec+ class in the afternoon sessions of a week long conference and they passed.

[HappyIdiot]

I took mine about two years ago. I picked up a book and took a couple practice exams, self studied. I think the exams helped me more than the book. The actual test was pretty easy. IIRC you have to get a 750 out of 900 to pass. So, you can miss 5~ questions and still pass. Make sure you are familiar with the more popular port numbers as they'll throw a few questions in there.

[moxnix]

Security+ was not that bad when I took it. I don't know how much it has changed in the last 5 years.

[complacent]

my advice would be to take a look at the DoD 8570 requirements and base your decision from there.

there is a big push to get everyone "certified" for their respective jerbs.

if this works out the way it has been planned, damn near everyone in the field will have multiple certs in the near future. and even if you don't work in a DoD field, you'll see spillover from contractors between contracts, firings, moves, etc.

aim for IAT-III if you're a tech and IAM-III if you like to manage people/projects.

with proper home study and online practice exams, you should be able to knock out sec+ with the quickness. it's adequately placed as a entry-level baseline certification. joo can doo eeet!

[Osiros]

Many thanks for the replies and advice all. Much appreciated.