CISSP Or CCSP – Which is better?

In order to understand whether CISSP or CCSP is better, it is first good to understand both the certifications and their details clearly.

Let us first understand the CISSP certification.

CISSP:

CISSP or the ‘Certified Information Systems Security Professional’ from (ISC)² is the most demanded certification in the industry today. According to the (ISC)² website, the CISSP certification “ is ideal for information security professionals seeking to prove their understanding of cyber security strategy and hands-on implementation”

Let us next understand the CCSP certification

CCSP:

If you are working in cloud security and cloud related technologies and architecture, and would like to demonstrate mastery over the cloud security concepts, then the CCSP certification is the one for you.

The CCSP certification is offered by (ISC)^2. in association with ‘Cloud Security Alliance’ or CSA. According to (ISC)²the CCSP or ‘Certified Cloud Security Professional’ “is a proven way to build your career and better secure critical assets in the cloud” (CCSP – The Industry’s Premier Cloud Security Certification) The exam tests a candidate in “cloud security design, implementation, architecture, operations, controls, and compliance with regulatory frameworks. ”

Let us compare both the certifications:

	CISSP	CCSP
Pre-requisites	CISSP candidate must demonstrate a minimum of 5 years of full-time security experience in two of the eight domains of the (ISC)²CISSP CBK(Common body of knowledge)	Candidates for the CCSP exam must demonstrate at least 5 years of full-time work experience out of which 3 years must be in the field of Information security and 1 year must be in one of the six domains of the CCSP exam.
Introduced in	1994	2015
Exam format	All English versions of the CISSP exam use CAT or ‘Computerized adaptive testing’ The candidate can check the pricing of the exam from this link The exam has about 100-150 questions The candidate must score 700 out of a possible 1000 points to pass the exam The duration of the exam is about 3 hrs.	The duration of the exam is 3 hrs. The candidate can check the pricing of the exam from this link The exam has about 125 questions The candidate must score 700 out of a possible 1000 points to pass the exam
Roles that require the appropriate certification	Chief Information Officer Chief Information Security Officer Director of Security IT Director/Manager Network Architect Security Analyst Security Architect Security Auditor Security Consultant Security Manager Security Systems Engineer	Enterprise Architect Security Administrator Security Architect Security Consultant Security Engineer Security Manager Systems Architect Systems Engineer
Domains	There are eight domains in CISSP: Security and Risk Management Domain Asset Security Domain Security Architecture and Engineering Domain Communication and Network Security Domain Identity and Access Management (IAM) Domain Security Assessment and Testing Domain Security Operations Domain Software Development Security	There are six domains in CCSP Cloud Concepts, Architecture and Design Domain Cloud Data Security Domain Cloud Platform & Infrastructure Security Domain Cloud Application Security Domain Cloud Security Operations Domain Legal, Risk and Compliance

CISSP or CCSP – which is better for you?

Having seen the details regarding the CISSP and the CCSP exam, we can safely say that both the certifications are important for an InfoSec professional. However, we would recommend you to attain the CISSP certification first and then move onto the CCSP certification. The CCSP is an extension to the CISSP certification and will complement it perfectly.

CISSP and CCSP – both will bolster your knowledge and resume – so go for them today!

Enroll for InfoSec Train’s CISSP and CCSP course and take your career to greater heights!

Bibliography

CCSP – The Industry’s Premier Cloud Security Certification. (n.d.). Retrieved from (ISC)2: https://www.isc2.org/Certifications/CCSP

AUTHOR
Jayanthi Manikandan ()
Cyber Security Analyst

“ Jayanthi Manikandan has a Master’s degree in Information systems with a specialization in Information Assurance from Walsh college, Detroit, MI. She is passionate about Information security and has been writing about it for the past 6 years. She is currently ‘Security researcher at InfoSec train. “