One of the best pieces of advice I have found in a long, long time:

Saw this on reddit recently:

“So, to your primary question, during those best 90 minutes of my exam - I passed at 100Q at 90 minutes - this was what I'd written on my dry-erase board and what I focused on:

  • YOU ARE A RISK ADVISOR/CEO – think like one.

  • Do NOT fix things (unless asked to do so, or unless those are the only answer options)

  • Think END GAME

  • Read EACH question 3x and then THINK before responding

This said, during my last two weeks, I did a high-level but comprehensive review of notes from ALL domains, and I particularly focused on making sure I knew and understood processes like RMF, SDLC, IR, BCP/DRP, etc. I took several 100-125 question practice exams during the last 10 days and used feedback from those exams to further hone the things I needed to focus on prior to my exam. Good luck and all the best as you make final preps for your exam!”

https://www.reddit.com/r/cissp/comments/i1eshf/exam_tips/fzx8qth/

Recent CISSP Feedback

Pearson VUE test centers have reopened, and candidates for ISC2 certs have now been able to schedule their exams. I’ve been getting sporadic feedback from test-takers; here’s one recent message:

“I took and passed the exam on Saturday. 118 questions in 1:15.

I actually thought it was a little annoying.  A lot of awkwardly worded questions.

It was very little direct technical questions (no TCP ports).  Focused on policy and judgement.  Think  before you act.  You have to have a core of IT knowledge, but the bulk was thinking strategically and not tactically.  I think your course focused on that way more than the other materials.  The cccure tests are pretty good.  The McGraw-Hill material was outdated and a big distractor.  And just knowing that 25 questions don't count, and you have a 25% chance of guessing let me just keep going forward after picking an answer on the weirder questions.”

Good to hear, and great words of caution for those gearing up for the exam. Good luck, everyone!

The Sensuous Sounds Of INFOSEC - Episode 13 - Ryan Skelton

This week we talk with INFOSEC professional Ryan Skelton about information security training and awareness programs, tools used in live environments, and how Robin sounds like an NPR interviewer.

The tool mentioned by Ryan during the episode: https://www.knowbe4.com/

The Saturday Night Live sketch Ryan references (and yes, Robin does sound like that!): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RoysmfRxPLc