I have the full number of session links on Gitlab. You will need your CIN Email that was registered to view. This is a @jasoneckert Gitlab fork with my own notes.

Stephen Schneiter said:

Hi @Shea Bennett, as others have mentioned, we will not offer another PenTest+ TTT series until the new version of the exam launches. You can view the current version on-demand from the Resource area here in the community. https://cin.comptia.org/resources/categories/cin-ttt-series.32/

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Thank you so much!!!

Gregory Childers said:

It means that CompTIA will lose all training business to others and will only provide certifications. CompTIA's official curriculum has been sliding for a couple of decades, but the current format may kill it off entirely.

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I don't know if that's the case; there's too much revenue to be had in subscription-based training. And there are folks out there that think CertMaster is great, particularly with the incorporations of LabSim's materials. I know there was a lot of concern among the authors and content producers that CompTIA was forcing them out of the market.

I'm just glad to see that there is a vibrant market where there are options for different learning styles.

Rick Butler said:

I think we can all tell stories of the paper-certs that we've encountered in the field. It's frustrating because I know the sweat equity that I put into attaining and keeping my certs - in fact, I go through the material every time I renew, just so I can make sure I remember the things I may not be sharp with.

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When I recertify for something I've certified in previously, I just read the exam objectives and brush up on the 10%-15% that has changed. I took the current Net+ and Sec+ without even looking at the exam objectives.

Rick Butler said:

It's a mindset. But again, it comes down to that sense of entitlement.

I remember a local area college here (some time ago) in Colorado Springs that would advertise, "Get your MCSE and make $65,000 per year!" as a line to drive enrollments. A lot of students went there and didn't walk away with their MCSE. They sued the school for false advertising, as if paying their tuition automatically granted them a cert and a salary. So the schools were to blame because they wanted enrollments.

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I see ads like that online all the time. Take our training and go from zero to hero in six weeks. You can be a cybersecurity professional!

Except you can't. No one can in six weeks. No company is dumb enough to hire someone with zero practical technical experience for a cybersecurity job. That's a mid-career option, not an entry-level job. Certifications are not a substitute for experience. They are a validation of knowledge.

Rick Butler said:

The students were also to blame for mismanaged expectations. I had one student in my program threaten to sue because they weren't prepared to take the Network+ after the six week course. He cited the instructor and the curriculum. But he didn't realize that I was wise to the fact to the fact that he wasn't even engaged in the course. Turns out, he spent most every day on Facebook or other social media, getting a little too friendly with the lady-folk and not paying attention to the intricacies of the OSI model. But somehow it was OUR fault. Well, the threats didn't go anywhere, particularly when I crafted a catch up plan for him. He didn't want to do the work, but he did want the cert and thought by parking his stupid rump in a chair in a Net+ classroom, he'd get the information by osmosis or something.

It's a story, both common and annoying, of which we all can speak to.

/r

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I blame training companies and educational institutions for LYING to students. I'm tired of sugar coating it. They're not exaggerating. They're lying.

The path to a cybersecurity career begins with grunt work. Help desk, desktop support, computer repair, and basic networking. Then moving into slightly more technical work, including work with servers and automation. Maybe they have enough experience five years into their career before someone gives them a break in cybersecurity.

I don't care if they crammed their way to a CISSP and are in the top 1% on HackTheBox. Little to no experience equates to little to no chance you're worth hiring. And college degrees for IT aren't worth the paper they're printed on without real-world, professional experience. A bachelor's degree can't even guarantee a help desk job, and going straight from a bachelor's to a master's with no work experience means that you paid a fortune to compete for entry-level jobs with high school grads with a few certs.

AI will eliminate a lot of entry-level jobs, so the younger generations will have to develop a work ethic in overdrive or pick a different career. The high skill jobs will suffer more, as fewer and fewer people are added to the talent pipeline. For us, more seasoned technical folks, we'll be fine through retirement because no one can do what we do. But I have doubts about the future.

Rick Butler said:

I don't think we'll see that from CompTIA, given their current trajectory with CertMaster products. And that's okay to me, because it gives the other publishers and authors a great opportunity to put their materials in the hands of learners and instructors. I can think of two, here on CIN, even, that would find an opportunity there.

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It means that CompTIA will lose all training business to others and will only provide certifications. CompTIA's official curriculum has been sliding for a couple of decades, but the current format may kill it off entirely.

I also applied for the beta but never heard back as well

Michael Schmitz said:

For SecurityX Cert. you need 75 Points. for Cysa 60
That counts for all Exams below, except Cloud.

I think passing the Exam SecurityX befor Dec. is the best way. it is not harder then Security + (imho). Just a little bit more Top down Approche...


Or you apply the Hours for the TTT of SecurityX to the CySA Renewal. (that will not get you to the 60 Points).

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SecurityX I would agree to go into that choice, would renew everything below

Stephen Schneiter said:

Join us for our next CIN Exclusive live-stream event!

Get ready to participate in a hands-on, practical cyber exercise with CompTIA, Cubic, and Cloud Range Cyber. For the next CompTIA Learning session, we’ll be conducting a cyber range exercise focused on protecting critical communications infrastructure. This will be a workshop, so prepare yourselves to interact with experts as you learn unique skill combinations that solve today’s critical issues. Throughout the session, AWS and Cubic will outline critical ways to manage, improve, and secure Mission Partner Environment (MPE) networks and communications. They will outline ways to cope with Denied, Degraded, Intermittent, and Limited (DDIL) environments, for example. All the while, we will all work hand-in-hand in a cyber range. We’ll be working inline and in real-time with experts who will help you learn the skills to help unify and secure edge and cloud for better communications and outcomes.

By the end of this session, you will be able to:

• Describe the critical infrastructure attack surface at the tactical edge for enterprise and cloud environments
• Discuss typical and asymmetric attacks that occur
• Identify critical, hands-on security analytics methods for protecting communications
• Create new cross-skilling pathways and learning opportunities with confidence

This session will last roughly three (3) hours. We will divide the action into three parts. In the first 30 minutes, AWS and Cubic will outline the opportunities and problems that today’s tech workers need to solve. We will then delve into a cyber range where you can hone practical skills and identify future learning pathways for you and/or your group.

Candidates can earn CEUs for the following certifications:

• CompTIA A+ ce
• CompTIA Network+ ce
• CompTIA Security+ ce
• CompTIA DataSys+ ce
• CompTIA Linux+ ce
• CompTIA Cloud+ ce

What: Skills for protecting mission-critical infrastructure: A hands-on workshop
When: Wednesday, October 29, 2025 8:00 PM CST
Where: Room: Hawai'i Convention Center 302AB
Who: Dr. James Stanger, CompTIA, Bri Frost, Cloud Range, Jason Stutt, Cloud Range, Yuri Sidorov, Cubic

Livestream Registration Here
View attachment 2441 View attachment 2440

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Done

Thank you so much for doing this!

Gregory Childers said:

And then they wonder why they can't get hired with a stack of certs they crammed for.

Click to expand...

I think we can all tell stories of the paper-certs that we've encountered in the field. It's frustrating because I know the sweat equity that I put into attaining and keeping my certs - in fact, I go through the material every time I renew, just so I can make sure I remember the things I may not be sharp with.

It's a mindset. But again, it comes down to that sense of entitlement.

I remember a local area college here (some time ago) in Colorado Springs that would advertise, "Get your MCSE and make $65,000 per year!" as a line to drive enrollments. A lot of students went there and didn't walk away with their MCSE. They sued the school for false advertising, as if paying their tuition automatically granted them a cert and a salary. So the schools were to blame because they wanted enrollments.

The students were also to blame for mismanaged expectations. I had one student in my program threaten to sue because they weren't prepared to take the Network+ after the six week course. He cited the instructor and the curriculum. But he didn't realize that I was wise to the fact to the fact that he wasn't even engaged in the course. Turns out, he spent most every day on Facebook or other social media, getting a little too friendly with the lady-folk and not paying attention to the intricacies of the OSI model. But somehow it was OUR fault. Well, the threats didn't go anywhere, particularly when I crafted a catch up plan for him. He didn't want to do the work, but he did want the cert and thought by parking his stupid rump in a chair in a Net+ classroom, he'd get the information by osmosis or something.

It's a story, both common and annoying, of which we all can speak to.

/r

Gregory Childers said:

I just want to go back to downloadable instructor PDFs and slide decks. Online only access to the training materials is a pain.

Click to expand...

I don't think we'll see that from CompTIA, given their current trajectory with CertMaster products. And that's okay to me, because it gives the other publishers and authors a great opportunity to put their materials in the hands of learners and instructors. I can think of two, here on CIN, even, that would find an opportunity there.

Rick Butler said:

I can tell you that in my 35 years, I still don't make $200k, and certainly not in 90 days. Probably couldn't do that without doing something very illegal.

But to get back to the OP's question, the one thing I put into every lecture is "heart". If students don't have the heart to train, stay hungry, and keep punching the bag to get those certs, they don't belong in the field. When I say this, I look for the "head nodders" and the "eye-rollers". That tells me all I need to know about how receptive they are.

/r

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Certifications were originally intended to validate a candidate's experience and knowledge. They weren't intended to be checklist items for newbies trying to impress recruiters. Over time, all of the certifications have been devalued. I see people pass the CISSP with less than the mandatory five years of experience. It used to be the gold standard, but how can it still be when newbies are passing the exam.

And then they wonder why they can't get hired with a stack of certs they crammed for.

I just want to go back to downloadable instructor PDFs and slide decks. Online only access to the training materials is a pain.

Shea Bennett said:

that's the exact same problem I have seen! Everybody wants to finish quick and make $200,000 in 90 days.

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I can tell you that in my 35 years, I still don't make $200k, and certainly not in 90 days. Probably couldn't do that without doing something very illegal.

But to get back to the OP's question, the one thing I put into every lecture is "heart". If students don't have the heart to train, stay hungry, and keep punching the bag to get those certs, they don't belong in the field. When I say this, I look for the "head nodders" and the "eye-rollers". That tells me all I need to know about how receptive they are.

/r

Locked and loaded. /r

Welcome to the community, Danny! Glad to have you on.

As I just said to Andrew, explore the community, jump into some conversations, reply, post, you know the drill.

I had thought about exploring the law enforcement side of Cyber - got a couple books on my shelf about criminality, to help understand what drives the bad guys from a psych perspective. It might be good to hear some of that out here.

Anyway, welcome aboard! See you in the threads.

/r

The instructor access keys are good for about three months after activating. My code for SecurityX dropped out this past week, so I'm trying a couple other things.

My only gripe about CertMaster is that I'm an audiophile - I learn by hearing and I like to listen to text on mobile, while driving around. Interestingly, I did CASP and Cloud, primarily by audio - had to have a PDF reader for those. For CM, it's much more difficult for audio. Not impossible, but a pain.

/r

What @Stephen Schneiter said... lol

GingerHacker said:

Hello everyone! My name is Andrew Crotty, and I’m excited to join the CompTIA Instructor Network. I’m a cybersecurity professional with over a decade of experience across military, government, and private-sector environments currently serving as a Cyber Network Defense Analyst and the Founder of The Ginger Hacker Initiative, a nonprofit focused on helping individuals break into cybersecurity through mentorship and certification support. I’m passionate about teaching, community building, and empowering the next generation of cyber professionals, and I look forward to learning, sharing, and collaborating with you all.

Discord: https://discord.gg/gh6KFVYG

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-crotty-377b3466/

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Welcome to the party, Andrew! Glad to have you and looking forward to hearing more about what you have happening, out here on the boards.

In the meantime, take a couple minutes, jump into a few conversations and let's get to know you better!

Good to meet you!

/r

MOHAMMAD SALAH said:

Any Updates ?!!!

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Unfortunately nothing yet

GingerHacker said:

Hello everyone! My name is Andrew Crotty, and I’m excited to join the CompTIA Instructor Network. I’m a cybersecurity professional with over a decade of experience across military, government, and private-sector environments currently serving as a Cyber Network Defense Analyst and the Founder of The Ginger Hacker Initiative, a nonprofit focused on helping individuals break into cybersecurity through mentorship and certification support. I’m passionate about teaching, community building, and empowering the next generation of cyber professionals, and I look forward to learning, sharing, and collaborating with you all.

Discord: https://discord.gg/gh6KFVYG

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-crotty-377b3466/

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Welcome!
Great background.

Jon W​

Happy birthday

Jeremy Black​

Please

Wish him happy birthday

issan​

Happy birthday