Systems Security Certified Practitioner (SSCP) Practice Exam

The Systems Security Certified Practitioner (SSCP) certification is designed for individuals who possess demonstrable technical proficiency and practical, hands-on experience in operational IT roles. It validates a practitioner's capacity to deploy, oversee, and manage IT infrastructure in alignment with information security protocols and guidelines, ensuring the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data.

Experience Requirements:

Applicants must demonstrate a minimum of one year of cumulative work experience in one or more of the seven domains covered in the SSCP CBK. For candidates who have completed a degree (bachelor's or master's) in a cybersecurity program, a one-year prerequisite pathway is available.

Candidates lacking the requisite experience to qualify for the SSCP certification may attain the status of Associate of ISC2 by successfully passing the SSCP examination. As an Associate of ISC2, individuals will have a two-year timeframe to obtain the necessary one year of required experience.

Who should take the exam?

The SSCP certification is well-suited for IT administrators, managers, directors, and network security professionals tasked with the hands-on operational security of their organization's critical assets. This includes individuals holding roles such as:

• Network Security Engineer
  
• Systems Administrator
• Security Analyst
• Systems Engineer
• Security Consultant/Specialist
• Security Administrator
• Systems/Network Analyst
• Database Administrator
• Health Information Manager
• Practice Manager

Exam Details

• Exam Name: Systems Security Certified Practitioner (SSCP)
• Exam Languages: English, Chinese, German, Japanese, Korean and Spanish
• Exam Questions: 150 Questions
• Time: 4 hours
• Passing Score: 700 out of 1000 points

Exam Course Outline 

The Exam covers the given topics  - 

Domain 1: Security Operations and Administration 16%

• Comply with codes of ethics
• Understand security concepts
  
• Identify and implement security controls
• Document and maintain functional security controls
• Participate in asset management lifecycle (hardware, software and data)
• Participate in change management lifecycle
• Participate in implementing security awareness and training (e.g., social engineering/phishing)
• Collaborate with physical security operations (e.g., data center assessment, badging)

Domain 2: Access Controls 15%

• Implement and maintain authentication methods
• Support internetwork trust architectures
• Participate in the identity management lifecycle
• Understand and apply access controls

Domain 3: Risk Identification, Monitoring and Analysis 15%

• Understand the risk management process
• Understand legal and regulatory concerns (e.g., jurisdiction, limitations, privacy)
• Participate in security assessment and vulnerability management activities
• Operate and monitor security platforms (e.g., continuous monitoring)
• Analyze monitoring results

Domain 4: Incident Response and Recovery 14%

• Support incident lifecycle e.g., National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), International Organization for Standardization (ISO)
• Understand and support forensic investigations
• Understand and support business continuity plan (BCP) and disaster recovery plan (DRP)

Domain 5: Cryptography 9%

• Understand cryptography
• Apply cryptography concepts
• Understand and implement secure protocols
• Understand public key infrastructure (PKI)

Domain 6: Network and Communication Security 16%

• Understand and apply fundamental concepts of networking
• Understand network attacks (e.g., distributed denial of service (DDoS), man-in-the-middle (MITM), Domain Name System (DNS) poisoning) and countermeasures (e.g., content delivery networks (CDN))
• Manage network access controls
• Manage network security
• Operate and configure network-based security devices
• Secure wireless communications

Domain 7: Systems and Application Security 15%

• Identify and analyze malicious code and activity
• Implement and operate endpoint device security
• Administer Mobile Device Management (MDM)
• Understand and configure cloud security
• Operate and maintain secure virtual environments