HOW TO PASS THE CompTIA Security+ EXAM in 2 WEEKS. Resources, Tools & Security+ Exam Advice

What is the best way to pass the Security+ Cyber Security certification from CompTIA? Looking to start a career in Information Security, Cyber Security, or Information Assurance? CompTIA Security+ exam is seen as a baseline to all those different Cybersecurity certifications like CISSP and others. It is a really good exam to take. It is a bit tricky though but gives you a great understanding of basic information security concepts. Studying and taking the Comptia Security+ exam builds a strong foundation for your security career. I spent some time researching how you can pass the Comptia Security+ exam in just a few weeks of studying and wanted to share my learnings and tips on how you can study for this cybersecurity exam! Feel free to drop in the comments any questions you may have or your experience studying/taking the exam!
• How I passed Security+...
• Everything you need to...
• How I passed CompTIA S...
Frequently, one of the first Cyber Security certifications that people pursue is the Security+ certification from CompTIA. Passing the Security+ certification exam first makes a lot of sense because quite a few employers have this Comptia certification listed as a hiring requirement in their job postings. Unfortunately, it may seem tempting to take this starter certification first, because it is easier to obtain, but that does not mean the Comptia Security+ exam is easy. Now, because the Security+ is the first certification many people attempt to obtain, they often get lost in the jungle of potential resources.
In this video, I will walk you through the exam basics, the best (researched) study materials, and I provide guidance on how you can potentially prepare for the Security+ certification exam in just a few weeks.

[@ajramirez77]

I passed the Security + exam with 2 months of studying. I had relatively low knowledge of cybersecurity when I started. I earned the Google Cybersecurity Certificate to get my cybersecurity baseline. After finishing, I used professor Messor's video series, Sec+ crash course videos, and Udemy & Professor Messor practice exams. Passed with a 784. Now, I'm being looked at for a sys admin position.

[@dreamtobeapolyglot8444]

Thank you for the info!

[@xk964264]

Passed net+ yesterday and here I am. I remember you saying that net+ was the hardest and to not going on unprepared. That motivated me to study even more and I postponed my test day. Well I passed ! And after passing A+ and net+. Network plus was a beast. Hoping that sec+ is just as they say. Easy since I have the foundations locked already. I start my government IT job Monday. Life is good

[@Robdoodle]

What’s the job title ? Congratulations

[@CyDETECT]

Do you have an degree?

[@arthurhyatt8964]

@@CyDETECT Most likely not. Degrees arent that important for IT

[@DEDEPLDEDE]

The exam passed today!

[@ITCareerGuide]

That is fantastic news, my friend. Congratulations. :-)

[@kay9329]

Congratulations

[@sherman1989]

Unless you are working as sysadmin, there is no point in passing in just two weeks. The knowledge acquired studying is the most important. Take your time and learn very well.

[@izzycrybaby1164]

I, for one, am a hands-on learner. I prefer to get the basics from studying and then get job placement ASAP for development and retention.

[@hdmaragh]

Why? you can study even more after you pass the exam. If the knowledge is the important part, even more important than the cert itself, the best course of action is to do the exam as fast as possible and then get to really studying even more. I passed in 10 days with no background and no experience. But I never stopped studying and if needed I can pass it again right now without any prep time.

[@CoachRob619]

​@hdmaragh what did you do to pass it in 10 days?

[@hdmaragh]

@@CoachRob619 I have a video on my channel about that and how in the beginning I did the A+, Net+, and Sec+ within 30 days. The short of it is: I used the course provided on LinkedIn learning as it was free with my library card, I reviewed with professor messer, I bought Mike Chapelle's book and also one more book. I didn't do any practice questions until the very very end and only because I had to miss my test day since my kids broke my computers mouse. I start out by watching the videos at 3x speed, 3x straight. purpose of this is to be immersed in the content I'm not actually taking in too much of it, it pretty much just shortens my start point. From there I actually watch every single video in depth. I also leap frog through the content after meaning I read like this: chapter 1 chapter 2 chapter 1 chapter 2 chapter 3 chapter 2 chapter 3 chapter 4 chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 ... The reason why is because I usually don't know what I'm reading the first time through, but somehow reading chapter 2 and bombarding my mind with something more complex forces and adaptation. . .then when I go back to chapter 1 everything oddly makes sense. This also keeps me moving through the content and reviewing the content a lot no highlighting - this makes me pick what I believe is important and there's no guarantee that the test won't ask what's between my highlights no note taking - note taking is good for focus, but bad for study, the test is on the content and most likely even more than that the content, it's not on my notes no practice exams - the questions on the real exam are copyrighted and are not supposed to be outside the test enviroment, meaning every practice exam is a question of what is guaranteed to not be on the test, besides testing isn't learning, just review everything multiple times and see everything as important. . . i mean why do question when I could just read the answer over and over and over again.

[@csbshaw1]

Comptia's official material website was best for me as far as reading being the proffered method. I'd say practice test wise, Jason Dion's practice tests were most accurate in comparison to actual test.

[@gusbarnesiii8210]

I passed my Security+ a few months ago. This exam covers a lot of information it’s unrealistic to pass this exam and most importantly retain this newly learned knowledge matter of 6 weeks. 2-3 month timeframe is ideal.

[@vfajardo3]

This is serious gold: Look at the opportunities that will open up, and not at what one could be missing out on..... this right here is a gamechanger for me. As an extrovert with many different passions, this line is one I'll be taking with me and applying everywhere. Thank you!

[@ITCareerGuide]

You're welcome :-)

[@andrewramirez3107]

These are very useful tips! Thank you sir!

[@0xC47P1C3]

Great advice. I agree with all these points. What works for me is reading the textbook over the course of about a month or two. Then one more month of review and practice tests

[@HayBayle]

Thank you very much for making this.

[@michaelhagen9714]

Great guidance my friend. Thank you so much! Planning on taking mine in 4 weeks. I have one suggestion as well to schedule out the Security+ exam to put the pressure on yourself.

[@ITCareerGuide]

Great suggestion! I agree with that approach. A solid timeline, a line in the sand - the pressure helps to keep you going. Please share when you pass it as well as what other topics can I help you with.

[@sika4245]

This was a great informative video. Thank you for taking the time to gather all of these tips !

[@ITCareerGuide]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@BLVDFR3ND]

Agreed, Mike Myers course and Professor Messer are fantastic. Taking the 601 shortly.

[@ITCareerGuide]

Wonderful. Let us know how it goes. I'll be looking forward to hear you passed :-)

[@onode797]

How did it go?

[@BLVDFR3ND]

@@onode797 Greetings. Unfortunately due to technical issues was unable to complete and awaiting new voucher to book test. Must admit ran through the performance based questions very fast and completed 15 questions before the abrupt issue and found these very straightforward. Few Questions I answered were mainly around secure protocols and good practice around securing corporate assets.

[@cgme9535]

@@BLVDFR3ND Did you take it again?

[@edstark44]

What's the general consensus on Mike Chapple's course on LinkedIn learning?

[@DanBlabbers]

I got the official study guide from comptia and that was very helpful. The questions are exactly how the test will be and it helps you learn.

[@Mangokyaw]

Is it certmaster or sth else?

[@dingadinga8861]

Just passed my N+. On to to Security + 🙌🏽

[@hdmaragh]

I passed the Security+ in about 10 days, it's on my channel. I actually passed A+, Net+ and Sec+ within a 30 day period and I had no work experience, no background, no practice, no experience, it was a literal start from zero.

[@Hannibalhd1]

Studying for my ccna now. Going t9 d9 security plus next. This is awesome.

[@johnczech7074]

I really appreciate your channel and advice. Consistently great content! Thank you sir.

[@ITCareerGuide]

My pleasure! Thank you, John. How are you doing otherwise?

[@johnczech7074]

@@ITCareerGuide doing well sir. Just getting ready to take A+ core 1

[@parabellum4221]

Thank you, General Picard.

[@paul3734]

I love how there are people in the comments saying that this can't be done - it's true that it will be those people who will not be the ones to accomplish this.

[@strappedup24]

Professor Messor study Material and notes are what I'm using currently.

[@slater-cguy]

Awesome video - i used this approach to pass comptia A+ 1101 and 1102 exams in 4 weeks (2 weeks each test)

[@Talkinallthings]

Did you have any prior experience ?

[@sighauser407]

I can't imagine someone wanting a career in Cyber Security not being able to give up things like friends and going out for only 4 weeks.

[@ITCareerGuide]

Agreed. Super small sacrifice for so much in return.

[@RK_is_here_]

You have a new subscriber 🙂

[@ITCareerGuide]

Welcome aboard and Thank you.

[@occupytheweb8855]

Great tips, thank you for your efforts. I hope you will publish a video about a path to study a certificate like CCNA and CCNA security

[@ITCareerGuide]

Great suggestion! I will add this to my list.

[@BrianFolkerts]

@@ITCareerGuide Totally agree. I would love to see you do the CCNA exam.

[@johnnyg8548]

I’m trying to make a career change into cyber security. Hopefully in the next month I can land a job

[@indiejones4683]

Most of these individuals had experience already. The first example your showed , the girl, i watched her video. She was already certified in CCNA and had worked in IT for years

[@dockdowdell]

Study 4 hours in the morning then an 1 hour during lunch then 3 hours at night

[@lindashrewsbury297]

Great information

[@ITCareerGuide]

Glad it was helpful! Thank you, LInda.

[@lindashrewsbury297]

@@ITCareerGuide You always give useful information.

[@juliusnanigadah4340]

great video

[@ITCareerGuide]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@tamburina]

Just to let everyone know, if they don't know yet - There is a new version of Daril Gibson's book for the 601 exam.

[@ITCareerGuide]

Thanks for mentioning this!!!!!

[@thelightbulbguys]

There is a 601 book now for those wondering! And it's been very helpful!

[@KBBoomin]

Wat book?

[@DiabolicKal646]

@@KBBoomin deez 🥜s

[@goddesssahrai8756]

What’s the book?

[@thelightbulbguys]

@@goddesssahrai8756 Darrell Gibson get certified get ahead 601

[@goddesssahrai8756]

@@thelightbulbguys thank you so much, I appreciate you. Where did you get your book?

[@edstark44]

What's the general consensus on Mike Chapple's course on LinkedIn learning?

[@theeotakufam6825]

Jason Dion is really good too

[@DEDEPLDEDE]

Hope it wont take long to prepare for exam. I have been studying from Cisco Introduction to Cybersecurity ,CyberQuest course plus Professor Messer's free videos. Hope that will be enough. Thank you for your opinion Christoph.

[@ITCareerGuide]

Best of luck. If you are studying for related courses, there will be an overlap. The way how the questions are worded will be different, so that is definitely an area where you want to take practice exams.

[@DEDEPLDEDE]

@@ITCareerGuide You are right. Some questions are tricky. But I have done already few practice exams with average more than 75% correct answers. Good thing is that I finished only about 10% Security+ material so I have a good feeling about exam.

[@overproof1460]

Ty

[@kobbybotsio2930]

Nice piece, I just subscribed to your page. Am targeting Cybersecurity, However am done with Network+. I hear people mention CCNA & Comptia Security +. Which of the above will be the prudent path to take?

[@jackgiordano9405]

Hey Koby, the Network+ is a good foundation to build from but the CCNA is a much more respected certificate in the tech industry.

[@ME-ov7vp]

good plan but i would change Mike Meyers course, instead do Jason Dion, i just passed the A+ and had the practice exams from both, and i agree with many people that nothing comes closer the wording on the exam questions like the Jason Dion practice exams

[@rickzor2700]

As somebody with no prior knowledge asides from 6 years working as an analyst in finance I am a bit worried about this course as I have just started and have been out of IT for 7 years.

[@raw1039]

If you are thinking about taking it i recommend buying the udemy practice tests. I thought i was ready but after the first test and only getting a 72%(90% is recommended) i realized i had a little more to go. Spent 20$ but probably saved 300 lol.

[@MorenoJSK]

Thank you sir for taking the time to help guide us! Just started EHD training and looking forward to gaining knowledge all in all. Going to study Security + and of course take the exam, is there such thing as entry level security jobs if you have Security+ and any other certs you recommend?

[@ITCareerGuide]

There are definitely entry-leven jobs, but it may be easier to take an interim step first.

[@MorenoJSK]

@@ITCareerGuide Okay, absolutely sir thank you!!

[@kmusamkamara1980]

Subscribed

[@HS76413]

Do you think one should get the CCNA before Security+ or the other way around? My goal is to go from help desk to network admin

[@ITCareerGuide]

I think CCNA carries more value if you want to get into networking.

[@DEDEPLDEDE]

Go for CCNA first. It will be good for you to have basics about networking. I did pass my CCNA few weeks ago and I was advised to take security path which I enjoy very much. Good luck

[@MrMarkmill]

Yeah my vietnamese friend studied for 3 weeks..no experience first time a+,sec+, cysa+, and ceh. Lol meanwhile I failed sy0-601 twice she started after I told her about it and has like 4 certs in 4 months. We both went to similar bootcamps for vets...geesh i need that brain. I scored 725 first time and 717 second time..only 75 questions both times..5 pbq..that stump me and need to practice. Any suggestions for anyone?

[@makingchangeslifechanges4950]

First go pass 601 and then tell us your thoughts

[@santorossi1869]

Hi, what do you think about SAP certifications? Are they worth ?

[@ITCareerGuide]

Absolutely. I think this is an area of I.T. that most people forget about, but there are so many cool career options and also money. Applications like SAP, Salesforce, ServiceNow, etc are beasts. Think about how an ERP implementation works and what it all touches within a company. There is so much opportunity and long-term career growth in this areas - you could almost say why pile into a crowded field like system administration if you can do something like SAP for more money and less competition and long-term job security if you are good at what you do?!

[@rickzor2700]

I do hear that SAP can rip out your soul. Be careful and research heavily. Your career is your Monday to Friday and thoughts on a Sunday evening

[@theindooroutdoorsman]

So I took the Testout security pro course last semester for my AS. Got a 71 on their test. Is it even worth me going over their practice tests for Security+ and going for it, or should I just focus on going for Network+?

[@austinhickerson7311]

Get your Network+ first. Security+ builds on top of A+ and Network+ so having those under your belt will definitely help.

[@theindooroutdoorsman]

@@austinhickerson7311 I haven't had any sort of training/classwork on Network+ but I had an entire semester on Security+. For whatever reason my AS program only has classes on CCENT, CCNA, ITF+, Security+ and A+. Which you would think a program titled Network Systems Technology would have a course for Network+.

[@austinhickerson7311]

@@theindooroutdoorsman Well your program does include the CCNA, which is seen as a higher level networking certification compared to Network+. The CCENT certification has been deprecated from my understanding. Though they may still have the course to help prepare you for the CCNA. Anyways, the CCNA will be overkill for Security+ on the Network sections so I wouldn't worry much about not having Network+.

[@zarahonaker1084]

is this for 601???

[@makingchangeslifechanges4950]

your video is not true for 601 just sat it yesterday and it was hard, 501 was easy but not 601.

[@csbshaw1]

The comptia official site learning resources are somewhat cost prohibitive.

[@ITCareerGuide]

Yes, for sure. Check out the resources on UDEMY. But in the end - everything is an investment and you need to figure out if the ROI is good?

[@mccreary74]

Ah looks like you are in Colorado or an enthusiast :-)

[@ITCareerGuide]

I lived in Colorado for many years.

[@mccreary74]

@@ITCareerGuide In the Springs myself

[@kuliet4life]

It is IMPOSSIBLE to pass in 2 weeks, unless you're already in the IT field. But as a novice, you will not pass in 2 weeks!!! But ye, Professor Messer and Mike Myers as well as Dion's practice questions from Udemy.

[@austinhickerson7311]

I've been studying for about 4 weeks now and will probably do another 4-5 weeks. Now I do work and I'm studying with my girlfriend which does hender my pacing. I think if you have 7 days a week to study and have no IT experience it will take a minimum of 4-5 weeks. It took me about 6 weeks each for A+ 1001 and 1002. Then another 6-7 weeks for Network+. I do work part time/full time some weeks though (not currently in IT) that slows me down. Anyways long story short, I agree that memorizing that much information in two weeks just isn't do able for a novice. That is unless they are using practice dumbs and memorizing the answers or something.

[@felawale4179]

That’s a ridiculous limiting belief lol I’m sure it could be done in 1 week without being in IT

[@kuliet4life]

@@felawale4179 mate, there is no way one without IT experience will pass security+ in 2 week, unless the individual is a genius, it is A LOT to take in, so to take that much in 2 weeks and pass, without IT experience is extraordinary.

[@nlvon]

@@kuliet4life I agree

[@mrlilstrom]

It’s been done by an ex army guy on KZbin with no prior IT experience. He actually passed A+,N+, and S+ in 30 days with no IT experience!

[@ae4xo]

aint no way the 601 can be done in 2 weeks

[@ITCareerGuide]

If you approach it with that mindset, you are correct. Don't look at this with what could possibly go wrong or not work your way. Rather look at this with what good things will happen if you do pass it in 2 weeks. Even if it takes you 2.5 or 3 weeks - the key is to have an ambitious goal and then to work towards it. Most people do not do that and then it takes forever because their effort adjusts to the timeline.

[@asas14444]

@@ITCareerGuide taking the security+ in 2 weeks not only is risky (losing money for no reason) but if you have no background in the field it is almost impossible or very very hard to achieve. I know you want to clickbait for views but come on.

[@SuperHtownswag]

@@asas14444 Facts. THE VAST MAJORITY OF THE PEOPLE who passed the security+ in under 3.5 weeks typicallly had experience (already had A+, N+ or had already been working in IT)

[@cgme9535]

@@SuperHtownswag I have the A+ with real experience working in IT. I still doubt I'd be able to pass this exam in two weeks. Maybe if I studied for 6-8 hours a day, every day of the week? But likely not.