CAP Boot Camps: An Inside Look At The Benefits
CAP Boot Camps are growing in popularity, and it’s clear to see why. These quick courses give you all the must-know information to prepare you for your upcoming ISC2 CAP Exam.
But more on that a little later.
We’re focussing on what a CAP boot camp entails, who should be signing up, and why you should get involved in the first place.
So, grab your notebooks, and let’s get into it.
CAP Boot Camp Learning Objectives
A CAP boot camp is generally a course that’s held over three to seven days, depending on how quickly you want to get it out of the way.
You learn about various topics to help you achieve your CAP certification. There are seven main areas of study:
- Risk management framework.
- How to implement security categorization.
- Selecting security controls.
- Applying security controls.
- Security control assessment.
- Authorizing information systems.
- Ongoing continuous monitoring of security controls.
These are the baseline modules for completing your CAP boot camp.
The main objectives of the CAP courses are to equip you with the knowledge of the best policies, practices, and procedures to maintain and establish security requirements of information systems.
Knowing how to assess risk is integral to supporting your business’s risk management framework (RMF).
You’ll also learn about the legal requirements of a business to ensure everything is done to comply with all regulations.
At the end of the course, you may be responsible for everything related to security within your organization. As a certified authorization professional (CAP), you’ll be in charge of setting up and maintaining information systems.
That’s a lot of responsibility. This is why certified authorization professional (CAP) certifications exist. Organizations need to know that their information systems and security controls are secure.
Once certified, you can monitor the security control baseline to make sure the security controls in place are sufficient.
A CAP certification also means you can create documentation demonstrating the organization’s risk assessment practices and procedures. This is vital to ensuring businesses remain within their legal requirements for security.
Who Earns The CAP?
Most of the CAP boot camps have similar prerequisites. You should have at least two years of work experience in one of the following areas:
- Information risk management.
- Security control assessment.
- Systems administration.
- IT security.
- General systems experience.
- Information security policies.
- Database systems.
- Auditing.
Starting a CAP boot camp without a little knowledge of the basics is a recipe for disaster. You won’t keep up.
Generally, boot camps go quickly because there is a lot to fit into a small amount of time. You won’t make the cut without knowing the basics of a risk management framework or security controls.
The course is designed to prepare you for the ISC2 CAP Exam. This comprises 125 multiple-choice questions.
This is the first step if you’re looking for a way to accelerate your career in information systems. It gives you the essential tools for security controls while also preparing you for further study. For example, CISSP (Certified Information Systems Security Professional).
Is The CAP Right For You?
A CAP certification allows you to further your career within the information systems sector. There are jobs within the private sector looking for candidates to take on the role of:
- Chief information security officer.
- Certified authorization professional.
- IT security manager.
- Cyber security engineer.
One of the top opportunities in the US is within the federal government and The United States Department of Defense. These two government organizations are actively hiring CAP-certified individuals.
The federal government is interested because the certification is the only one currently in compliance with DoD 8570. These are a group of qualifications needed by anyone working within IT in government agencies.
Another aspect to consider is job security. The COVID-19 pandemic saw an unprecedented increase in healthcare information sharing.
With that comes a serious threat to information security for organizations that previously had little worry about their information risk management.
While the worst of the pandemic appears to have passed, the need for adequately trained IT security professionals has not.
Careers in security control assessments aren’t going anywhere soon.
Is A CAP Boot Camp Worth It?
Yes, a CAP boot camp is one of the easiest ways to ensure you are fully prepared for your ISC2 CAP Exam.
Make no mistake, while the questions are multiple-choice, the exam takes work. You’ll need to study, work hard, and prepare as much as possible.
That’s where the boot camps come in handy. If you’ve got any questions or need extra guidance, you’ll have access to a wealth of information.
Remember, you’ll need to know about the following:
- How to maintain information systems.
- Periodic security status reporting.
- Security control effectiveness.
- Preparing a security control assessment plan.
- The security requirements needed to remain within the legal and regulatory requirements.
So winging it isn’t the answer.
FAQs
How long does a CAP certification take?
The exam has about 225 multiple-choice questions that you have three hours to complete. The boot camps are generally between three to seven days.
How much does a CAP boot camp cost?
The prices vary a lot because each boot camp has its own curriculum. You can expect to pay between $500-$4,000, depending on what you’re looking to get out of it.
Is a CAP certification a good thing to have?
Absolutely! If you’re currently working within IT security, getting CAP certified is one of the best ways to propel your career. You’ll learn how to monitor an organization’s security control baseline and much, much more.
Our Final Thoughts
A CAP certification is one of the best career moves you can make within the IT security and risk management framework (RMF) sector.
But to get there, you need to sit the ISC2 CAP Exam, which takes a lot of time, effort, and preparation to pass.
That’s where CAP Boot Camps come in. These courses prepare you for the exam, ensuring you understand security controls well.
Sources:
https://www.infosecinstitute.com/courses/cap-boot-camp/#schedule
https://secureninja.com/training-courses/cap-certification-bootcamp.html
https://trainingcamp.com/training/cap-certification-bootcamp/
https://testpassacademy.com/courses-isc2-cap-certification-training.html