CISSP Certification Straight Off The Bat?

combat.monkey

Hi guys, a little wisdom if you will.

I currently have 15 years experience in law enforcement, together with a number of years in InfoSec (within UK Mil). I am conversant with JSP440 and I wish to achieve CISSP certification. My quandry is which route is the most efficient way to achieve this. I am working towards A+ and having discovered this site only today, I now realise that I should probably be jumping through a few more hoops prior to attempting my exam, particularly with regard to improving my baseline system knowledge.

I am fairly experienced at setting up home networks and configuring home systems, but I have no experience of setting up network switches, WAN's e.t.c. I really want to leave the military within the next year, so I am hoping to speed the process of certification up, although I realise that you can't fast track and expect to pick up a top flight salary.

Your comments are most welcome!

dynamik

The A+, Network+, and Security+ are the most common entry-level certifications. Some people tack on the Linux+ and Server+ as well. Is there a specific discipline (MS, Linux, Cisco, etc.) you want to focus on? Do you want to be doing hands-on IT work or do you want to be in more of a managerial role? The CISSP appears to be geared more towards managers and directors.

Also, be sure to check out the requirements for the CISSP. You need five years of full-time security-related work. You can knock one year off for having a qualifying degree and another for having one of the qualifying certifications. You can also look at the SSCP or becoming an (ISC)2 associate.

You should read through all the security threads. There is a wealth of extremely interesting information there, and I think that will really help you develop a better understanding of what's involved and give you some direction as to where you want to go next.

keatron

It appears that you have significant experience. So one reasonable route for you would be to knock out A+, since you've arleady invested time in it. Get one of the popular CISSP exam prep books, (Shon Harris, or the Official Guide from ISC2), Look through the domains and find out which ones you've not worked in during your years of work. For example, the stuff about chain of custody, will probably be just a review for you (considering your law enforcement experience). Once you figure out which domains you have no experience in, focus on them heavily. I'd suggest getting other supporting material for the domains you're weak in (like books or articles dedicated specifically to those domains). You seem to fit the model of a person who has "heavy" experience in a few of the domains, and light or no experience in others. All in all, I think you're probably an ideal candidate for the CISSP. Good luck and check back here often.

Keatron.

combat.monkey

keatron wrote:

It appears that you have significant experience. So one reasonable route for you would be to knock out A+, since you've arleady invested time in it. Get one of the popular CISSP exam prep books, (Shon Harris, or the Official Guide from ISC2), Look through the domains and find out which ones you've not worked in during your years of work. For example, the stuff about chain of custody, will probably be just a review for you (considering your law enforcement experience). Once you figure out which domains you have no experience in, focus on them heavily. I'd suggest getting other supporting material for the domains you're weak in (like books or articles dedicated specifically to those domains). You seem to fit the model of a person who has "heavy" experience in a few of the domains, and light or no experience in others. All in all, I think you're probably an ideal candidate for the CISSP. Good luck and check back here often.

Keatron.

Thanks a lot for your advice & encouragement K, I am pretty certain which path to pursue, starting with the A+! That book is Huuuuge!