You will earn the CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) certification by passing one exam that includes both multiple-choice and performance-based questions. Read on for some common-sense advice that can increase your chance to succeed in your exam and achieve CompTIA CySA+ certification status.

In its very basic nature, the CompTIA CySA+ exam is not that much different from any other written test that you may have taken to-date. The exam uses various types of questions to verify your knowledge in these specific areas:

• Configuring and using threat detection tools
• Performing data analysis
• Interpreting the results to identify vulnerabilities, threats and risks to an organization

Being well-prepared remains your best bet to score a positive exam outcome, namely passing the test and being awarded the CompTIA CySA+ certification.

• CompTIA CySA+ is the only intermediate high-stakes cybersecurity analyst certification with both hands-on, performance-based questions and multiple-choice questions.
• CySA+ focuses on the candidates ability to not only proactively capture, monitor, and respond to network traffic findings, but also emphasizes software and application security, automation, threat hunting, and IT regulatory compliance, which affects the daily work of security analysts.
• CySA+ covers the most up-to-date core security analyst skills and upcoming job skills used by threat intelligence analysts, application security analysts, compliance analysts, incident responders/handlers, and threat hunters, bringing new techniques for combating threats inside and outside of the Security Operations Center (SOC).

Your CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) certification is good for three years from the date you pass your certification exam. Through our continuing education (CE) program, you can easily renew CompTIA CySA+ and extend it for additional three-year periods. Read on to learn more about the certification period and ways how you can renew CompTIA CySA+.

CompTIA CySA+ is a member of our group of certifications with globally-recognized ISO/ANSI accreditation status. They expire three years from the date they are earned and can be renewed through our continuing education program.

We refer to certifications within their three-year period after a successful exam, or when it is successfully renewed, as active. We refer to certifications as expired, if they are not renewed. If your certification has expired, the only way to get it back again is to pass the certification exam again.

CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) is the industry standard for validating that cybersecurity professionals can perform data analysis and interpret the results to identify vulnerabilities, threats and risks to an organization. CompTIA CySA+ is compliant with ISO 17024 standards and approved by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) to meet directive 8140/8570.01-M requirements.

The new CompTIA CySA+ certification covers the security analyst job role, in addition to these others:

• Security operations center (SOC) analyst
• Vulnerability analyst
• Cybersecurity specialist
• Threat intelligence analyst
• Security engineer
• Cybersecurity analyst

Companies like the U.S. DoD, Target, Western Governors University, and Northrup Grumman all look for CompTIA CySA+ certification in hiring.

Becoming certified in CompTIA CySA+ opens doors to a variety of cybersecurity jobs, such as but not limited to:

Cybersecurity Analyst

If you like to identify threats, attacks and vulnerabilities in your network and stop cybercriminals in their tracks, then cybersecurity analyst may be the job for you.

A cybersecurity analyst detects cyber threats and performs incident response to protect an organization in the following ways:

• Manage and configure tools to monitor activity on the network
• Analyze reports from those tools to identify unusual behavior on the network
• Proactively identify network vulnerabilities through penetration testing, vulnerability scans and vulnerability assessment reports
• Plan and recommend changes to increase the security of the network
• Apply security patches to protect the network

The demand for cybersecurity analysts is huge. In the next eight years, CompTIA projects an increased demand of 32% for cybersecurity analysts. Plus, you’ll be rewarded for your knowledge. According to CyberSeek, cybersecurity analysts earn an average salary of $96,000.

Cybersecurity Engineer

Cybersecurity engineers work to build and maintain a system that’s safe against cyberattacks. They focus on fixing and protecting these systems and stay up to date on new technology so they can keep their system secure by doing the following things:

• Create new solutions to solve existing security issues
• Enhance security capabilities by evaluating new technologies and processes
• Define, implement and maintain corporate security policies
• Configure and install firewalls and intrusion detection systems
• Respond to information security issues
• Supervise changes in software, hardware, facilities, telecommunications and user needs
• Recommend modifications in legal, technical and regulatory areas that affect IT security

The huge responsibility that cybersecurity engineers carry often puts them at the top of the food chain in cybersecurity teams – making a graduate degree an almost standard prerequisite.

Security Operations Center (SOC) Analyst

SOC analysts are the first responders to cyber incidents. They report cyber threats and then implement changes to protect an organization.

An SOC analyst supports their organization in the following ways:

• Provide threat and vulnerability analysis
• Investigate, document and report on information security issues and emerging trends
• Analyze and respond to previously undisclosed software and hardware vulnerabilities
• Prepare organizational disaster recovery plans

As cyber threats become more complex and their potential for damage increases, the demand for this type of position has grown.

Threat Hunter

A threat hunter is exactly what it sounds like. These IT pros proactively find cybersecurity threats outside of the SOC and help mitigate them before they compromise an organization – and it’s not an easy task. Predicting the next cyberattack is difficult because advanced threats have no defined indicators.

That’s why threat hunters have the following responsibilities:

• Search for cyber threats and risks hiding inside the data before attacks occur
• Gather as much information on threat behavior, goals and methods as possible
• Organize and analyze the collected data to determine trends in the security environment of the organization
• Make predictions for the future and eliminate the current vulnerabilities

To some degree, the threat hunter position is pretty new. Many think of this role as an extension of the cybersecurity analyst job role, but the difference is that a threat hunter is tasked specifically with advanced threats that might evade the SOC.

Vulnerability Analyst

A vulnerability analyst detects weaknesses in networks and software and then takes measures to correct and strengthen security within the system.

A vulnerability analyst supports their organization in the following ways:

• Develop risk-based mitigation strategies for networks, operating systems and applications
• Compile and track vulnerabilities and mitigation results to quantify program effectiveness
• Create and maintain vulnerability management policies, procedures and training
• Review and define requirements for information security solutions
• Organize network-based scans to identify possible network security attacks and host-based scans to identify vulnerabilities in workstations, servers and other network hosts.

As attackers have learned to evade traditional signature-based solutions, such as firewalls and antivirus software, an analytics-based approach within the IT security industry is increasingly important for organizations. CompTIA CySA+ addresses this need and validates an IT pro’s ability to proactively defend and continuously improve the security posture of an organization.

CompTIA CySA+ includes more analytics with a different focus to address the growing specialization in cybersecurity. CompTIA Security+ provides candidates with a baseline of general cybersecurity knowledge and skills.

CompTIA Security+ will validate a candidate’s knowledge and skills required to:

• Assess the security posture of an enterprise environment and recommend and implement appropriate security solutions
• Monitor and secure hybrid environments, including cloud, mobile and IoT
• Operate with an awareness of applicable laws and policies, including principles of governance, risk and compliance
• Identify, analyze and respond to security events and incidents

CT-PENTEST+: CompTIA PenTest+

Cybersecurity remains one of the hottest topics in IT and other industries. It seems that each week brings news of some new breach of privacy or security. As organizations scramble to protect themselves and their customers, the ability to conduct penetration testing is an emerging skill set that is becoming ever more valuable to the organizations seeking protection, and ever more lucrative for those who possess these skills.

The CompTIA PenTest+ certification is intended for cybersecurity professionals such as penetration testers and vulnerability assessment analysts who are tasked with scanning, identifying, exploiting, reporting and managing vulnerabilities on a network.

CT-CASP: CompTIA Advanced Security Practitioner

CompTIA Advanced Security Practitioner (CASP+) is an advanced-level cybersecurity certification for security architects and senior security engineers charged with leading and improving an enterprise’s cybersecurity readiness and is the ideal certification for technical professionals who wish to remain immersed in technology, as opposed to strictly managing.

CT-CSX: CompTIA SecurityX

CompTIA’s Advanced Security Practitioner Certification (CASP+) is now the new CompTIA SecurityX, the latest addition to CompTIA’s Xpert series. SecurityX is the capstone certification in CompTIA cybersecurity pathway, and it’s designed for experts in the field, like you, who are ready to advance in their career.