SSCP — Systems Security Certified Practitioner
ISC2's practitioner-level certification below CISSP, targeting security operations and administration roles. Covers access controls, security operations, risk identification, incident response, and cryptography at a hands-on practitioner level. DoD 8140 approved and recognized in government and enterprise contexts. The one-year experience requirement keeps it from being purely a beginner cert. Often described as 'CISSP lite' — it validates a broader operational security skillset than Security+ but is less prestigious than CISSP. A reasonable mid-career credential for practitioners in security operations roles who aren't ready or positioned for CISSP.
| Issuer | ISC2 |
|---|
| Level | intermediate |
|---|
| Domains | Defensive Security / SOC, Security Architecture & Engineering |
|---|
| Practical weight | 0% |
|---|
| Cost (USD) | 249 |
|---|
| Renewal | 3 years |
|---|
| DoD 8140 | Yes |
|---|
| Skills | access_control, security_operations, risk_identification, incident_response_basics, cryptography_application, network_security, system_administration_security |
|---|
Official certification page
Browse all 426 cybersecurity certifications on EBCertMap