Entry Level Cyber Security Certifications

Comptia Linux+ And/or Comptia Pentest+

If youve made it to this point, you now have a number of certifications listed after your name and are probably qualified for an entry level position in cybersecurity. If you decide to continue on your certification journey, you should consider one or both of the certifications listed in this step. The important point of our step #3 here is to start expanding our knowledge into a specialty.

The CompTIA Linux+ is not the most widely-known or widely-respected Linux certification, but it is a good certification that can be earned in one exam without a great deal of experience, and it will serve to begin validating your specialty skills in a very valuable area Linux.

Our other certification exam at step #3 is the CompTIA PenTest+. I like this exam for beginners because it is cost-effective, requires only one exam, and does not require documented field experience. The PenTest+ also helps you begin to specialize in a lucrative area penetration testing. Even though it wont get you a penetration testing job on its own, it is a good first step.

I recognize that there are other options at this level, such as the CEH , but this costs more than $400, which makes it a challenge for beginners and disqualifies it from our list.

Giac Certified Incident Handler

Earning the GCIH validates your understanding of offensive operations, including common attack techniques and vectors and your ability to detect, respond, and defend against attacks. The certification exam covers incident handling, computer crime investigation, hacker exploits, and hacker tools.

This certification is meant for anyone working in incident response. Job titles might include:

• Security incident handler – $52,144

• Security architect – $172,470

• System administrator – $78,885

Requirements: There are no formal prerequisites for taking the GCIH exam, though itâs a good idea to have an understanding of security principles, networking protocols, and the Windows Command Line.

Cost: $2,499

specialization

Learn at your own pace

Skills you’ll build:

analysis, incident response handling, CSIH, Network Forensics, Computer Security Incident Management, Malware Analysis, Memory Forensics, Traffic Analysis, Continuous Function, Verification And Validation , Ordered Pair, Representational State Transfer , Domain Name System , Image Resolution, Breach , Packet Analyzer

Building Blocks Of Cybersecurity

Now the biggest question is what if you do not have any prior experience in cybersecurity but you want to enter or work in the cybersecurity field? Then you must start earlier on the roadmap. First, CompTIA A+ will be amazing. It validates that you have prior skills, which the company looks for in new cybersecurity professionals. This certification contains all the latest core technologies of the operating system cloud, operating system, it also contains physical security, privacy, malware detection, and repair.

After that, you can follow Cisco Certified Network Associate . This will help you to learn about networking. It covers topics like network fundamentals, network access, internet protocol connectivity, and many more.

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How To Start A Career In Cyber Security

Whether gaining experience on the job, training through a cybersecurity boot camp or studying via a traditional degree, starting a career in cyber security isnt always a linear path.

Granted, the most linear path toward a cyber security career is through a traditional degree program in computer science, engineering, IT or a related field. In fact, some professionals even opt to go further and get masters degrees. However, those just starting out and looking for entry-level positions sometimes opt to forgo the traditional degree path for 24-week intensive cybersecurity boot camps. As the appetite for cyber security technicians increases, picking up cyber security skills without a four-year degree has become increasingly popular.

Not all cyber security jobs require degrees or credentials. Though diplomas or certificates can provide a more direct path to gain skills, create a portfolio of work and build a resume, earning skills by working can be invaluable. It should be noted, however, that landing a cyber security job with little to no experience can be challenging.

There is not just one path to starting a career in cyber security. You can choose where you start and where youre going depending on your needs.

Can I Land A Job With A Cybersecurity Certification

Yes. A certification shows that you have expertise in the relevant areas and can contribute to the organizations cybersecurity goals.

Since youre hereThere are hundreds of thousands of vacant cybersecurity jobs, and one of them has your name on it. You can enter the industry in 6 months flat with our Cybersecurity Course. Weve helped over 10,000 students make huge career changes with our fully flexible mentor-led bootcamps. Explore our free cybersecurity curriculum today to start your career switch story.

About Akansha Rukhaiyar

Akansha is a freelance writer for SaaS B2B brands, with a parallel interest in writing for mental health services and education websites. She has worked with globally diverse clients and loves to incorporate The Office references in her writing in the most accessible ways

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How To Stand Out When Applying

Speak the language Develop a thorough understanding of all the key industry terms and acronyms. Its essential that you work toward becoming fluent in the technical language used by cybersecurity professionals.

Get qualified Take the initiative to do some self-learning. Chuck Bane, academic director of the University of San Diegos online masters degree in cyber engineering, recommends getting your CompTIA Security+ certification.

Do some networking Whether through school, certification programs or old-fashioned legwork, look for and leverage opportunities to converse with people who are working in the field. Seek out cybersecurity groups and meetups, both in-person and virtual.

Document your training and skills Put extra effort into making sure that your resume strongly showcases the work you have put in to prepare yourself for cybersecurity opportunities. Another great way to stand out is to have the sharpest-looking personal webpage so you can engage potential employers with not only your qualifications but your online creativity.

Be prepared When applying for a specific job, do some homework to gather information on what the job is all about. Knowing what the job requires enables you to develop strategies for talking about your abilities to do the work.

Cybersecurity Career Paths: Feeder Roles Into Entry

Your pathway into an entry-level cybersecurity job can include work experience in a variety of different domains. However, these are generally considered to be the top five so called feeder roles.

One outstanding resource to better understand such feeder roles and how they create opportunities to transition into entry-level and then upper-level cybersecurity jobs is provided by CyberSeek.org. Their Cybersecurity Career Pathway tool includes detailed information about the salaries, credentials and skillsets associated with various roles.

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Council For Registered Ethical Security Testers

The Council for Registered Ethical Security Testers is a not-for-profit organization that provides internationally recognized certification and accreditation for companies and individuals. It has chapters in the United Kingdon , United States , Australia, Singapore, and Hong Kong. They provide examinations in Penetration Testing, Threat Intelligence, Incident Response, Security Architecture. The Incident Response has been approved by Government Communications Headquarters . CREST exams have three levels of accreditation for individuals:

• Practitioner Entry into profession
• Registered Competent to work independently without supervision
• Certified Technically competent to run major projects and teams

A complete list of cyber security certifications can be found in Section 5.4.

Cisco Certified Network Associate Security

The CCNA certification is issued by Cisco. CCNA Security certification is another foundational certification exam if you are looking to kick-starting a career in security.

This exam will help you build the skills required to develop a secure infrastructure with routers and firewalls and other security devices. It will help you to recognize threats and vulnerabilities to networks, and define how to mitigate security threats.

• Prerequisites: You just need to have experience in working in an IT network environment and its recommended but not compulsory to sit for the A+ Exam by CompTIA.
• Exam: CCNA Exam has 120 multiple-choice questions to be answered within 2 hours and 849 out of 1000 points is the passing score).
• Cost for the exam: $300 USD

Advantages of CCNA Security

The CCNA exam helps you to gain the skills required to test you on everything related to network fundamentals, network access, IP connectivity, and security fundamentals.

Website: Cisco Certified Network Associate Security

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Is A Cyber Security Certification Enough To Get A Job

Truly, it is not enough. You need to convince them by your personality that you can work in any situation.

Yash Jaiswar

Yash Jaiswar is a Cyber Security enthusiast with an experience of 2+ years and an independent bug hunter. He likes to write write-ups and blogs. He is also a CTF player and on TryHackMe he is in Top 2%. He is also a website developer. His hobby is drawing, reading books and being on his laptop.

Avail your free 1:1 mentorship session.

Comprehensive Cybersecurity Program By

US News & World Report, 2022

What you’ll learn

Incident Response to cyber attacks

Designing Cybersecurity controls to protect your organisation

Investigating data breaches, cyber attacks

Fundamentals of Cryptography, Cloud Security, Network Security

Completing this program will enable you to:

• Demonstrate knowledge of in-demand Cybersecurity Skills

• Build a birds eye view of the global cyber threats landscape

• Prepare for prominent industry certifications like: CompTIA Security+ EC-Council Certified SOC Analyst

• Identify, assess risk and defend against modern-day threats

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Certification Exam And Partnerships With Universities

The certification exam takes two hours to complete and includes 100 multiple choice questions. Students must correctly answer 70% of the questions to pass. There are questions about all of the main concepts in the training course including security principles, business continuity, disaster recovery and incident response concepts, access controls concepts, network security, and security operations.

2 is also working on developing partnerships with universities to include the certification in their programs. The organization is first planning to work with cybersecurity degree programs, as well as business programs to offer the certificate program.

Weve noticed the employers are still hiring for certification, not necessarily degree programs, Rosso says. We are just in the very beginning stages of working with universities to help guide them and share with them information we have from industry about whats important to cover in their programs.

Starting Your Career In Cyber Security Is Easier

You dont need to go back to school or university to do a four-year degree to enter into the cyber security space. If you want to get into cyber security, you just need to know about IT and get some relevant cyber security certifications.

The best way to get it is by taking up some entry level cyber security certifications. And then, gain some experience from a cyber security entry level job. These experiences will strengthen your resume and help you move forward in your career.

The earning potential in cyber security is vast.According to Forbes, the cloud security profession is one of the most lucrative careers right now. Then comes DevOps and application development security professionals.

That means, if you are looking for a job with a handsome pay, certifications for cyber security can help you get that job.

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Cybersecurity Certifications Can Help You Navigate Your Career Path

Entry-level certifications are an excellent way to begin, improve or navigate your career path as an IT professional. Pursuing and achieving IT certifications helps you demonstrate a willingness to learn while developing the in-demand career skills your employers and future employers want.

Max Freedman contributed to the reporting and writing in this article.

Cybersecurity Needs New Talent Now More Than Ever But Landing That First Job Without A Computer Science Degree Can Still Be Difficult Here Are Five Tips For Getting In The Door

• Ashwin Krishnan,StandOutin90Sec

The security field has a much-discussed skills shortage and an abundance of job openings. Experts regularly urge hiring managers to consider a broader, less homogenous pool of candidates. Yet, many aspiring cybersecurity professionals still find it challenging to break into the field without traditional credentials.

The following five tips can help you get into cybersecurity with no experience.

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Offensive Security Certified Professional

The OSCP from Offensive Security has become one of the most sought-after certifications for penetration testers. The exam tests your ability to compromise a series of target machines using multiple exploitation steps and produce detailed penetration test reports for each attack.

The OSCP is a good option for jobs like:

• Penetration tester – $97,465

• Threat researcher – $57,612

• Application security analyst – $96,140

Requirements: There are no formal requirements to take the exam. Offensive Security recommends familiarity with networking, Linux, Bash scripting, Perl or Python, as well as completion of the Penetration Testing with Kali course.

Cost: From $999 course, 30 days of lab access, and one exam attempt)

Academic Cybersecurity Certification Programs

There are a few main differences between academic cybersecurity certification programs and other kinds of academic training like cybersecurity bachelors or cybersecurity masters degrees.

Certifications take less time to complete sometimes they might be courses that last several weeks to a year or more. They also dont require as many prerequisites like traditional undergraduate courses .

Academic cybersecurity certification programs are great options for students that might have already completed a degree in a related field and are looking to make a career switch, or for students that want to explore what preparing for a cybersecurity career might be like before committing to a lengthier academic program.

Below are two examples of different kinds of cybersecurity programs:

Havards Cybersecurity: Managing Riskin the Information Age is a great example of an academic short course designed to help launch careers in the cybersecurity field.

The course outline, according to the eight modules looks like this:

The course culminates in a certification from Harvard Universitys Office of the Provost for Advances in Learning.

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The Best Cybersecurity Certification Path For Beginners

When we look at entry-level cybersecurity certifications and which ones are the best fit on a certification path, there are a few factors and criteria that we want to consider. The best cybersecurity certifications for beginners will require the equivalent of two years or less of experience, cost less than $400, and only take one test to achieve. They also will not mandate specific training to be completed beforehand. Keep in mind that a number of exams require documented work experience in the cybersecurity field or sponsorship from someone already in the field, so those would not qualify for entry-level status either. We also want to choose a path that minimizes time and effort since our goal is to get certified and get hired quickly.

With these factors in mind, here is my view of the best cybersecurity certification path for beginners who are looking to enter the field:

Why Take This Course

What makes this course so beneficial is that you will learn the terminology and key concepts needed to speak fluently about cybersecurity. You will also have a foundation upon which to build as you explore more advanced topics in the cybersecurity field. By the end of this course, you will be able to:

• Explain security concepts related to information assurance
• Articulate the basic concepts of computer networking
• Describe common network threats and attacks
• Explain basic concepts related to network security infrastructure
• Articulate the importance of data security and security controls
• Explain access control concepts

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Giac Certified Forensic Examiner

SANS Institute provides the GIAC Certified Forensic Examiner , and it proves that the practitioner has adequate skills and knowledge for computer forensic analysis with core skills for investigation on any windows-based system. The areas covered in this certification are email forensics, log analysis, windows forensics, advanced web browsing forensics, cloud storage analysis, and many more. This certification is especially for those who have deep knowledge of windows forensics and information security and computers.

• GCFE certification cost is $949 USD.
• The certification is valid for 4 years of earning.
• The exam contains 115 questions, with the length of the exam as 3 hours, and the passing score is 71%.
• You can keep the certification active by collecting 36 credits over four years .
• The average salary for GCFE is $75,018 USD, and in India average salary for a Forensic Analyst is 4.2 Lakh rupees per annum.

Check out some of the KnowledgeHut Cyber Security courses that can get you the right skills needed for a successful career in cyber security.

Is It Better To Get A Degree Or Certificate In Cybersecurity

It depends. Cybersecurity certifications and courses have evolved over the years. They now match the knowledge that a traditional degree would provide you. These certifications are at a fraction of the cost and time required for a degree. Regardless of background, it would be better to learn through cybersecurity certificates.

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Launch Your Cybersecurity Career For Free: This Organization Is Giving Away 1 Million Entry

Sydney Lake

The field of cybersecurity is full of opportunities for people of all different backgroundsbut it can often be difficult to decipher what exactly is needed to land an entry-level job. The industry still tends to hire candidates who are tech savvy, but cybersecurity experts are pushing for companies to hire for the non-technical and train for the technical aspects of these roles.

Now theres a benchmark for entry-level candidates to illustrate an interest in the industry and willingness to learnand thats a new online program offered by nonprofit cybersecurity certification organization 2 called Certified in Cybersecurity. This program, which launched in the spring, helps candidates learn the basics of cybersecurity including security principles, business continuity , disaster recovery and incident response concepts, access controls concepts, network security, and security operations.

And theres an enticing incentive for people interested in cybersecurity careersthis new certification is free for the first 1 million people who sign up to complete the online course and certification. In the three months since its inception, the program has registered more than 110,000 candidates. As the worlds largest nonprofit association for certified cybersecurity professionals, 2 chose to invest in entry-level candidates, although the organization has certification programs for the upper echelons of the industry.