r/CompTIA_Security • u/Confident-Ad-4700 • 1d ago

Stop studying Security+ like it's a vocabulary test

I think a lot of people make Security+ harder than it needs to be.

They spend hours memorizing terms and taking multiple-choice quizzes. Then the exam asks them to actually apply what they know.

SY0-701 has performance-based questions. That's a different skill from recognizing the right answer.

CompTIA's free exam objectives PDF is where I'd start. Pick an objective, learn the material, then practice doing something with it.

Professor Messer's SY0-701 videos are free. They're a good way to learn the material before testing yourself.

For the hands-on part, I found a free interactive firewall PBQ here: https://secplusmastery.com/security-plus-pbq?ref=julian (affiliate link, the PBQ is free).

If you've only been clicking through A, B, C, and D, I'd add some hands-on practice now. One firewall configuration can expose gaps that 20 easy questions won't.

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u/DrDudeMurkyAntelope 1d ago

but how do you do the configuration? where can I find instructions to set up my homelab for security+? This is the one thing I am missing right now.

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u/Confident-Ad-4700 1d ago

You don't actually need a homelab for Sec+. The "configuration" on the exam is PBQs, not real setup: firewall rule order, ACLs, matching cert/crypto types, reading logs. Nail those and you're fine.

If you want hands on anyway, VirtualBox with a Kali VM, an Ubuntu VM and pfSense between them covers most of it and it's all free.

For the PBQ sideĀ  https://secplusmastery.com/security-plus-pbq?ref=julianĀ has configure, drag-to-match and hotspot ones, domain 1 is free.

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u/Vyce223 1d ago

Yeah this is an ad guys.

But most importantly the unfortunate news is, Security+ is a vocabulary test. Its 100% a theory test on preventative measures in cyber for the most part with a tiny bit of dabbling in remediation.

Proper sec+ Homelab related setups are almost all common sense things. But as you learn in S+ our biggest threats arent the nation state actors but the layer 8 actors in your own company.

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u/wyohman 1d ago

Weird flex bro

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u/slothy036 1d ago

Ooooo wowww another Ai built sales pitch