Is CISSP certification is easy?

This is pretty controversial topic, some people think that it is easy but most of the people find it real hard. You should have experience of at least 3 years in IT security before you apply for the exam. You are required to come up with an extremely wide area of IT security such as physical security, very few people will have any experience in. And you will be expected to do enough reading and studying to get through CISSP certification exam: 250 questions to be answered in 6 hours. Hard to keep upwith much fun.

Get certified, sit back and enjoy.

The answer is big NO. After you pass the exam you are expected to earn CPE credits in order to keep your certification active. If you don’t then you are required to resit the exam after 3 years to keep the certification. Getting CPEs is fairly straightforward: if you publish papers, attend seminars, do some presentations, and basically remain active in the IT security arena then you should have no problem here. But it takes a little work: this isn’t a get-it and forget-it sort of certification.

You will get more money/better job/more recognition.

In actual fact, you probably won’t. I have found that many employers and even employment agencies have no idea what a CISSP is. They tend to think in terms of the product-certifications; you know, the Cisco CCNA and Checkpoint CCSE sort of thing. They have no idea that you need 3 years of experience to get a CISSP, and they have no idea that it is an ongoing professional-level certification like a CPA (Chartered Accountant). Ergo, you probably won’t get a better job or more money from waving your CISSP certificate around.

So, why would you want a CISSP? Its not easy to get, it takes maintenance, and may not gain you much. Why would you want to go through all that hassle? Here’s some good reasons:

1. To expand your knowledge in security concepts and practices.
2. To show a dedication to the security discipline.
3. To meet a growing demand for security professionals, and to work in a thriving field.
4. To join a professional organisation and to link up with like-minded individuals.

If you’re genuinely interested in IT security (cryptography, practices, ethics, etc), and you feel you need a driver to learn more then the CISSP is for you. Book the exam, then start learning as much as possible. On the other hand, if you just want a better job/more money then get an MCSE or CCNA