Cybersecurity careers are on the rise. According to CompTIA's Cyberseek tool, there were over 457,000 job openings requesting cybersecurity-related skills between September 2023 and August 2024. Given the predicted growth, organizations are finding they are increasingly in need of IT professionals who can identify and respond to a variety of cyber threats. That’s where CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) comes in.
The CompTIA CySA+ certification provides you with the skills necessary to join the rapidly expanding field of cybersecurity. As a high-stakes exam, you’ll want to ensure you are fully prepared before you undertake the IT certification process. Here’s our advice on how to study for the new CompTIA CySA+ (CS0-003) exam.
Knowing what to expect: A brief overview of CompTIA CySA+
Training is difficult if you have no idea what you’re facing. For that reason, it’s a good idea to understand what you can expect to see on the CompTIA CySA+ exam.
The CompTIA CySA+ certification proves that you have the skills needed for incident response and management. It tests your ability to perform continuous monitoring as a method for preventing, detecting, and combating cybersecurity threats. You’ll need to understand and apply the skills required to analyze networks and devices for cyberattacks and develop a plan for mitigation.
Getting ahead: Why you need CompTIA CySA+
Tech professionals benefit greatly from ongoing education, as IT is a vital and continuously evolving field. As cyberattacks increase and improve, cybersecurity professionals are more essential than ever.
The CompTIA CySA+ exam covers skills in software security, automation, threat hunting, and regulatory compliance. To pass the CompTIA CySA+ exam, you will need to illustrate your ability to:
- Respond to and recover from malicious attacks
- Implement intelligence and threat detection techniques
- Analyze and interpret data
- Identify and address vulnerabilities
- Maintain compliance with data privacy and protection regulations
Step-by-step study plan for CompTIA CySA+
To successfully study for CompTIA CySA+, follow these steps:
Step 1: Create a plan
Once you’ve made the decision to earn CompTIA CySA+, it’s important to first make a plan before you jump into your CompTIA training solutions. Take a few moments to consider the following:
- Do you meet the prerequisites? Although there are no hard prerequisites, CompTIA recommends that you have CompTIA Network+, CompTIA Security+, or equivalent knowledge plus a minimum of four years of hands-on experience as an incident response analyst or Security Operations Center (SOC) analyst or equivalent experience.
- Do you have a plan? It pays to be organized and diligent upfront when it comes to successfully passing certification exams.
- How do you learn best? Consider whether to self-study or attend a course from an authorized training provider.
- How will you test yourself? Use practice exams correctly to discover how quickly you take exams and identify areas of weakness for additional study.
To know what to study, begin by downloading the exam objectives for free and reading through all the objectives. Doing so will help reveal your areas of strength and weakness, which will determine the topics you need to prioritize when studying.
Exam objectives are divided into domains. The domains are weighted, which also helps to organize exam preparation.
Here are the new CompTIA CySA+ domains and their relative weights:
Domain Exam Weights
- Security Operations 33%
- Vulnerability Management 30%
- Incident Response Management 20%
- Reporting and Communication 17%
Twenty percent of exam objectives for CompTIA CySA+ (CS0-003) were updated to include cloud and mobile, current trends, and threat intelligence.
Step 2: Build your knowledge
The purpose of an IT certification is to showcase your skills. If you want to obtain CompTIA CySA+, you’ll need to acquire the knowledge to identify, combat, and manage cybersecurity threats.
Now that you’ve reviewed the exam objectives and have an idea of what you need to prioritize, it’s time to study. CompTIA offers both self-study and classroom-based training options so you can choose the method that best fits your needs and preferences.
CompTIA CertMaster Learn
CompTIA CertMaster Learn is a comprehensive eLearning solution designed around CompTIA CySA+ exam objectives. This tool is packed with content and features that are designed to help you learn in an engaging and flexible way, no matter if you’re just getting started or already have relevant skills. It is also organized into a personalized learning plan to help you manage your study time.
CertMaster Learn includes:
- Interactive learning with flashcards and performance-based questions
- Videos that demonstrate key concepts and processes
- Customizable learning plan
- Easy self-assessments
- Learning progress analytics and reporting
The Official CompTIA CySA+ Study Guide
Alternatively, The Official CompTIA CySA+ Study Guide also covers all of the exam objectives, so you know you’re focusing on the right topics.
Step 3: Practice your skills and get hands-on experience
Learning is just the beginning. Once you’ve acquired the knowledge, you need to know how to apply it. To get hands-on cybersecurity practice, you can use your own cybersecurity tools like virtual machines, threat intelligence feeds, or the Elastic Stack.
You can also use CompTIA CertMaster Labs to get hands-on experience in real virtual environments. When integrated with CertMaster Learn, students experience both knowledge acquisition and hands-on skills development through a single login and seamless workflow.
Step 4: Get exam ready
One of the best methods for exam success is to take practice exams under simulated testing conditions. You can do this with CompTIA CertMaster Practice, which helps to reinforce your knowledge by providing adaptive learning technology and personalized feedback.
CompTIA CertMaster Practice is an online knowledge assessment and certification training companion tool. It offers a full, timed practice test experience, including scenario-based multiple-choice and performance-based questions that you’ll encounter when taking the CompTIA CySA+ exam.
CertMaster Practice is the final stage in your learning process and allows you to:
- Identify and fill knowledge gaps
- Discover if you tend to be quick or slow when taking exams
- Learn the average time each question takes to complete
- Get comfortable with the interface
- Reinforce knowledge by using study mode (correct answers are displayed immediately)
Why use CompTIA training products?
IT students are often lifelong learners. While some are looking to expand their credentials as experienced professionals, others are seeking additional certifications to add to their education. Regardless of where you are in your educational journey, CompTIA training products use a multi-faceted approach and are designed to follow exam objectives so that you know what you’re studying is what you’ll see on the test – and what you need to know to do the job.
Ready to get CompTIA CySA+ certified?
Now, you can get started! Take your career to the next level and prove you have the cybersecurity analyst skills employers are looking for with CompTIA CySA+.
With a successful training approach, you can test with confidence, pass your exam, and get certified. Follow these steps, and we’re sure you will succeed. Plus, note that these skills will serve you well on nearly any CompTIA exam you decide to pursue.
Looking for more about CompTIA CySA+? Check out these articles:
- The New CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+): Your Questions Answered
- 5 Jobs You Could Get With CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+)
- Playing Both Sides of Cybersecurity: CompTIA CySA+ and PenTest+
Learn the skills you need with CompTIA CertMaster Perform.