ISC SCCP or CompTia Security+ ????

happyend98

Would love to hear everyone's opinion and recommendations as to which certification might be a better fit for my job aspirations. CompTia Sec+ or ISC(2) SCCP? I currently work for a major IT company in security related field/job role. I am in Client Access Mgmnt, sort of the gatekeepers for administering Network accounts and Remote Access , UNIX, Mainframe etc.
My official email signature for one of the large clients we server is (company name) Security Services. However even though I work on a IT security related team this is not the specific job I want. I am looking to get into Intrusion Detection, Threat team, Monitoring(Work station or Network) Security Analyst. There are so many titles not even sure which is the correct one. Which brings me to my question of which cert would be best to start with of these two for that type of job role.
My second question is , are there any good sites or materials that better define IT Security job roles with specifics?
Thanks in Advance for all replies

Ken

PS. I have been with my current company 4 years with 3 years in my current role. The first year was a Service Desk role(tech support for our clients)

Chinook

The technical level of the two exams are very similar. Security+ is a generalist conceptual exam on security. SSCP is a bit more granular & has areas of focus. For example, in S+, you'll study the basics of certificates, encryption, etc. In the SSCP, it might take you a bit deeper into some topics. I personally found the SSCP material a bit "dry" compared to Security+. Regardless, both are excellent exams & layout a great foundation if you want to be a security practitioner or just a Sys Admin that understands security.

Their are some requirements for the SSCP exam you don't have with S+. They are listed on the ISC2 website. If you are taking the CISSP in the future, the SSCP is a good start.

One note: These exams are meant to build a foundation in security. If you go out on job boards you probably won't see many requests for either. Do not let that dissuade you; it's about building a solid foundation. And once you complete either you'll realize you know more than many of your peers in system admin gigs.