Are you planning to take your SY0-601 CompTIA Security+ exam? In this video, you’ll learn how to prepare and which resources will give you the best chance for success.
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Hello, everyone. I’m James Messer and welcome to Professor Messer’s SY0-601 Security Plus training course. In this course I’m going to take you from the very beginning to the very end of the Comp TIA exam objectives so you’ll learn everything you need to know to pass the Security Plus Exam. The certifications from CompTIA are some of the most popular certifications in the world. The A plus network plus Security Plus and all of the other CompTIA certifications are often used to move people into their first job, or to get them a better job once they are in the it industry.
You also find that Security Plus is very often a prerequisite for jobs. For example the US federal government and organizations that do business with the US federal government often require that their technologists are Security Plus certified. And of course, one of the advantages of getting any certification is the knowledge that you learn and the personal satisfaction of having that certification.
CompTIA is the Computing Technology Industry Association. They are the largest provider of vendor neutral IT certifications, so you’ve probably run across CompTIA when looking at A Plus, Network Plus, Security Plus, or many of their other certifications. The advantage of having a single source for a foundational certification means that you don’t have to go to many different organizations just to get the basics of what you need to know to do your job. Instead you can go to one source, CompTIA, and earn that foundational cert.
This is also not specific to a single country, either. You can earn your CompTIA certification in over 100 countries around the world. In this series of training videos I’ll take you through everything you need to know to earn your Security Plus certification, and these are topics and experiences that I’ve had in my 25 years of IT. These are jobs that range from being in mainframe operations, networking, desktop management, all the way through cybersecurity. And as we go through these topics, I’ll try to bring those experiences I’ve had into these videos so you get to learn from the things that I’ve seen in the field.
I’ve designed this course, to be very modular. So most of these videos will be less than 15 minutes in length. You’ll be able to decide exactly how much of this information you want to grab at any particular time. These are also videos that I have honed over time. This is my fourth edition of a Security Plus course, so we’ve been able to improve and add on to this information through every iteration that we’ve made.
Our primary goal with this course is that you get this certification so that you can get that first job in IT or get a better job in IT. If you’re watching this course online then you can watch the entire course for free. There’s no single video that’s shortened, there’s nothing behind a paywall. Everything is there and available for you to watch through every minute of this course.
If you want a version of the course that you can take offline, I have a version of that you can purchase. And I also have course notes, practice exams, and other materials that might help you with your studies. You can find all of this on my website at professormesser.com.
When you’re ready to take SY0-601 Security Plus certification, you’ll find that this is an exam that is 90 minutes long, and you could get a maximum of 90 questions on the exam. There might be fewer than 90, but you’ll never see more than 90 questions on a single exam.
The score that you’re looking to earn is between a scale of 100 to 900. You have to earn a 750 to pass your Security Plus certification. There are five domains that you need to know for the Security Plus certification. The first domain is attacks, threats, and vulnerabilities. And that is 24% of the exam.
Domain two is architecture and design. That’s 21%. Implementation is domain three, that’s 25%. Domain four is operations and incident response, that’s 16%. And lastly Domain five is governance, risk, and compliance, and that is 14% of the exam.
Before you watch any video, before you read any books on Security Plus, make sure that you’ve downloaded and read through the CompTIA exam objectives. They are an extensive guide that will tell you exactly what you need to know to pass the exam. I have a link to the CompTIA website that you can find at professormesser.com/objectives.
You’ll also want to use as many different resources as you can. Of course, I will have all of my Security Plus videos available for you to watch at any time. You’ll also want to get a good book. I have recommendations on my website that can point you in the right direction. There’s also a chat on my website 24 by 7 where you can communicate with me and others who are studying for their Security Plus certification.
And of course you want to be sure that you’re able to get as much hands on as possible. I have resources on my website that can help you. You can find it at professormesser.com/secplus-resources/ Once you go through all of these videos, you read the book, you get as much hands on as possible and plenty of Q&A, then you’re ready to take the exam. You want to be sure to go through the entire set of exam objectives and make sure you know everything that’s listed in that document.
You might choose to take the exam online at home, or you might choose to go to a testing center. If you’re going to a third party testing center, you might want to familiarize yourself with the location and make sure you know exactly where you’re going on test day. Whether you’re taking the test at home or taking the test in a testing center, you want to be sure that you’re mentally ready for the exam. Make sure you get plenty of sleep, make sure you have plenty to eat. Make sure you’re comfortable when you walk into the exam center. You might even want to arrive early and make sure that you’re ready to take the exam and very comfortable in the environment at the testing center or at your home.
If you’re taking your exam at home then you probably have control over your environment. But if you’re at a third party testing center there might be noises or environment problems. You want to be sure to make them aware of those issues before you’re done with the exam.
Time management is key for Security Plus. The questions are generally very long to read through, and you have to go through a lot of questions to get to the end. You want to be sure that you don’t run out of time. Some people like to skip over the performance based questions at the beginning, others like to go all the way through them from beginning to end. Find the strategy that works for you and use that one to be able to manage your time properly.
Once you finally hit the Submit button you’ll know immediately whether you pass the exam or not. And all of your exam results will be available online for review after you’re done.
So hopefully now you’re ready to start your studies with Security Plus. You’ll find all of my videos are indexed and available for you on the Professor Messer website. We have our real time chat to help you through any problems you might have. I have monthly study groups that are live and interactive so you can answer questions or call in our after show and ask questions directly of me. There are many other resources available. You can visit us on our website at professormesser.com. Thanks for watching, and we wish you the best with your Security Plus studies.