Career In Network Security...plz advice

*StarFire

I want to establish a career in Network Security.At present I am doing N+.Shall I go for CCNA->CCSP or I will do Security+ before that?

Pash

Do you have much experience in IT at all? If not yes S+ is absolutely necessary to get a foundation of the subjects you will encounter later in your chosen path.

networker050184

You should go for what ever interests you. You will most likely have to spend some time doing something besides security if you do not already have experience in that field. Security isn't really an entry level field. The people that work in security usually have experience working with the systems before securing them.

mikej412

The greater your experience and knowledge, the better.

Check out the After CCNA, a CCNP or CCSP? thread. A security position usually isn't entry level, so unless you luck out and find a firewall administrator job while working on your CCSP (after you've done 2 exams you could get the Cisco Firewall Specialist designation), you could get the certification but not have any security experience. Even if your dream is to secure Cisco Networks -- the CCNP is still good to get first.

The Security+ can be used as an elective if you go for the MCSE. The Linux+ could be useful since there's lots of good security tools (and other tools) available (or work best) on Linux. If you're not a PC expert, you may want to also get the Microsoft MCP (with one of the client exams like XP). The more knowledge of what you have out there using your network, the more likely you may be able to secure it against the bad guys.

mrj

I'd worry about getting into IT first, you won't be touching Security style jobs for a long time. Those jobs are for the extremely experienced typically. Also I'd recommend being as reliable and felony-free as possible for security clearances/etc.