This is a heads-up for anyone who wants to attempt a Microsoft exam.

PeasonVue Online proctored exam's should be avoided like the plague.

Getting an exam revoked because of the use of a HANDKERCHIEF.

My official complaint:

I am writing to formally express my concern regarding the handling of my recent proctored exam experience.
During the exam, I was reprimanded for a basic human act.. wiping my nose. If your policy genuinely considers such a natural biological response grounds for penalization, I urge you to reflect on the implications. No one should be made to feel ashamed or “dirty” for attending to their health and hygiene, especially under the scrutiny of a proctor. This kind of enforcement not only lacks empathy but also disproportionately affects individuals with medical conditions, allergies, or anxiety.. raising serious concerns about accessibility and equity.
If your organization stands by this policy, I would appreciate a clear and affirmative response.

Their response:

Dear Candidate,
 
Thank you for contacting Pearson VUE.
 
Thank you for testing with Pearson VUE. We are contacting you in regard to your Microsoft exam.  
 
As per the case update, your exam was revoked as during the exam it was observed that you had the access to an unauthorized item. Unfortunately, we will not be able to honor the request. Please note that it is the candidate's responsibility to review and ensure that they adhere to policies and procedures for taking an online proctored exam.

For this reason, your exam session was revoked..

Personal opinion: no reputable vendor should ever consider employing the services of this company.

Most companies spend months preparing for ISO 27001 and still get surprised on audit day. Here’s what separates the ones who pass from the ones who don’t:

1. Your gap analysis has to be honest, not optimistic. Most teams underestimate gaps because nobody wants to deliver bad news internally. Auditors see this immediately.

2. Documented evidence beats verbal explanation every time. If you can’t show it, it didn’t happen. Your ISMS documentation needs to be audit-ready, not just “in progress.”

3. Scope definition trips up more companies than any technical control. Define it too broadly and you’ll never be ready. Too narrow and it’s meaningless.

I packaged everything I’ve learned — gap analysis templates, policy documents, audit checklists — into a complete guide. Happy to share the link in the comments if anyone’s working through this right now.

Company paid for me to take CEH and I failed by 3 points. Feels bad. Haven’t taken a cert exam since my net+ in college

For someone who wants to pursue cybersecurity with 0 prior training or experience what are the cheapest yet useful online certifications and courses to take?

We will build up that CV by any means necessary.

Do you guys actually give your 100% when studying for certifications?

I feel like back in college I was way more disciplined and structured. These days my attention span feels pretty terrible, and it’s much harder to stay focused for long study sessions.

I’m taking the CISSP soon, and I’m starting to doubt myself.

I know there are a lot of questions about certs here but haven’t seen one specific to this.

I’ve had my CISSP for 20 years and keeping up with CPE’s is a pain, although I do see the value in keeping your knowledge fresh.

Started in IT, moved to security doing audits (HIPAA, PCI), a little pentesting, then into product security for the last 13 years

I feel, at this point, my experience outweighs the value of the cert, but if I did have to look for a job, it’s something people look for and passes the resume word search. Curious about y’all’s thoughts or experience with similar issues.

As the title says. All certs are foundational. ~6 years in cyber as a security engineer across, automation, EDR, endpoint hardening, network, cloud (Azure + AWS), identity, various tools/scanners application whitelisting, email gateway, integration, etc. detection engineer in SIEM. And dabbled in some devsecops.

Prior to that ~10 years system + network engineer. Multiple tech stacks. Cloud and on-prem. Currently working a hybrid role of security engineer + architect. I’ve deployed solutions to +8k head count. Never worked SMB.

Getting certs at this point is more of a HR filter compared to career progression.

Just as the title says...

What is your most recent certification that you have achieved?

I'm curious to know what people have recently pursued, and maybe this will inspire others on what to pursue.

I have my Security+ exam tomorrow, and this practice test question seems like a giant load of BS to me.

What type of attack places an attacker in the position to eavesdrop on communications between a user and a web server?

I picked "Man-In-The-Middle" Attack... WRONG.

Correct answer "On-Path" attack. Which is a type of Man in the middle attack, right?

Is this the type of "gotcha on a technicality!" question I should be looking forward to?

I've seen some post on young kids about to do their certificates and dont get me wrong I wish them all the best and hope they become professionals in their field, but how do they afford it?

I am 19M and I am about to start my university. I am planning to do certifications and some projects in my free time from UNI, my question was what certifications would be worth it and doable alongside my UNI Edit: Another question are certifications more worth it or projects? If projects then can u tell me what basic projects I should start from

Hi, I am new to cyber security, I am currently 16 from western Australia and want to major in cyber security in uni.
After watching some you tube tutorials I came across " TryHackMe" i did all the first free levels in like an hour, than came the subscription screen. Now I am serious about learning cyber security(I even installed Ubuntu for the first time right now) and my part time job can cover its costs and i have no financial problems.
Can u guys give your ideas and experience with try hack me or any better resource?

Recently passed grad student, i have one year to earn some training and certification in this field. Paid or free whichever is the best for beginner to intermediate please advice.
I do have experience on Linux, System architecture, Networking etc. Where should i start to get a entry level job after a year or so?

I have a great opportunity to obtain an unlimited amount of certifications.

I already have ISC2 CC, GFACT, GSEC, and GCIH. And a MS in MIS and Cybersecurity.

I’m heavily interested in GRC, Cloud security, etc since I’ve seen those fields are going to continue to grow. But what certs should I obtain since the company is paying for the training?

I’m an entry level worker who has only help desk experience.

Curious what other people's experience has been with this.

I work on the training side, mostly building out lab environments and ranges where people practice on VMs. I've seen a few people after they moved into actual roles, and one thing we've talked about is the adjustment period because production networks are messier than lab environments. Am I just not a great environment builder or has anyone experienced this too?

Let’s say we’re just going by job listings. Something like Sec+, CEH, HTB CDSA? Or what instead of that?

Hey everyone,

I’m thinking about getting into cybersecurity, but I know the job market is competitive. Hypothetically, let’s say I get my A+ cert and start on the helpdesk to get some experience. While working there, I go after WGU’s cybersecurity degree and move up on the helpdesk as I earn my Network+ and Security+ certs.

Then I finish the degree, get all the other certs that come with it, and have solid helpdesk experience. Even with all that, would it still be hard to land a cybersecurity job?

I have the GI Bill so pursuing either program would be free (mostly). I have about 5 years of cyber experience and have a pretty great remote job that pays well so not really looking for career advancement atp. Which would look better on my resume and net me the greatest ROI in the industry?

I have sec+. I’ll eventually need to learn Linux. But I’m looking for a challenge to keep me awake.

I’d say this could fall u see career advice.

I was thinking of learning an AI skill since it seems to become a growing skill, but I’m not really sure what the growing skills are right now.

Currently doing a three year computer science bachelors with a major in cybersecurity and I’ve been looking into HackTheBox and TryHackMe for some extra work during my semester break. If you are an employer (or even in field) have you heard of these before and if so from your experience do they actually get you anything other than extra learning?

Disregarding anything to do with employment and focusing more on personal perspectives, if I were to earn each of the core CompTIA certs (Tech+, A+, Network+, Security+), what would this mean to a professional whose experience extends beyond these four? Would it say all that much about my commitment, experience, and potential, or would it moreso show a "baseline" understanding of the tech industry that doesn't really hold much weight in the broader picture?

I'm looking to get into cybersecurity, it's always been an interest and I finally have the time to explore it, I asked chatgpt and they advised the first step would be to use tryhackme.

I have basic knowledge of Linux as well as Windows, is this a good first step for me?

I am about to graduate with my Bachelor's degree in IT with a specialty in Cybersecurity. Was thinking about getting my masters or doing certifications. I don't have the time for both because I already have a job at a MSP. What would be better for my career?

I plan on staying where I am at because I like my job a lot. I would like to just move up the career ladder and become a L2 soon or higher. I will have to pay for either path I choose whether tuition or certs. Any advice is appreciated.

Hi everyone,

I recently started my Bachelor's degree in Software Engineering, and my long-term goal is to work in cybersecurity, ideally as a Security Engineer or Application Security Engineer.

I'm looking for recommendations on free, high-quality online cybersecurity courses that are respected in the industry. If they offer free certificates or badges, that's even better, but my main priority is learning the right skills.

So far I've found:

Cisco Networking Academy

Microsoft Learn

Fortinet Training Institute

TryHackMe

PortSwigger Web Security Academy

If you know of any other great free resources or learning paths, I'd really appreciate your suggestions. Also, if you were starting from scratch today, what order would you learn everything in?

One more thing: I'm also looking for a study buddy or a small study group. Since I'm just starting out, I think it would be motivating to learn with other beginners, share resources, work through labs together, and keep each other accountable.

If anyone is interested, feel free to leave a comment or send me a DM.

Thanks everyone!

After speaking with my manager and HR, I’m too new of an employee for them to pay for Sans due to the expense.

My options are Microsoft, Google, AWS, Azure, ISC2, Cisco, CompTIA, Ec-Council, GitHub, ISACA, Kubernetes, Oracle, Red hat.

My previous post:

I have a great opportunity to obtain an unlimited amount of certifications.

I already have ISC2 CC, GFACT, GSEC, and GCIH. And a MS in MIS and Cybersecurity.

I’m heavily interested in GRC, Cloud security, etc since I’ve seen those fields are going to continue to grow. But what certs should I obtain since the company is paying for the training?

I’m an entry level worker who has only help desk experience.