Playing Both Sides of Cybersecurity: CompTIA CySA+ and PenTest+

In cybersecurity, as in the military, sports and more, a solid defense is nothing without an equally strong offense. You can’t just sit back and wait – you need to take action. Cybersecurity professionals need to find system weaknesses before cybercriminals do, and that’s where security analyst and penetration testing skills come in.

CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) validates the defensive skills needed to protect a network, while CompTIA PenTest+ validates the offensive skills needed to attack it. Both certifications seek to discover and mitigate (fix) vulnerabilities before the enemy discovers and exploits them.

Both CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) and CompTIA PenTest+ are intended for intermediate-level cybersecurity professionals. While CompTIA CySA+ focuses on defense through incident detection and response, CompTIA PenTest+ focuses on offense through penetration testing and vulnerability assessment.

CompTIA CySA+ involves proactively monitoring networks, detecting, responding to threats, attacks, and vulnerabilities and demonstrating competency of current trends. It’s intended for cyber professionals tasked with incident detection, prevention and response through continuous security monitoring.

CompTIA PenTest+ involves launching attacks on systems, discovering vulnerabilities and exploiting them. It’s intended for cybersecurity professionals tasked with penetration testing and vulnerability management.