CompTIA Security+
CompTIA's core cybersecurity exam, for people who handle day-to-day security work. SY0-801 (Security+ V8) is expected to launch on or around November 17, 2026. Candidates testing before then take SY0-701 (V7), which retires in English on June 11, 2027. This track practices what SY0-801 tests: security principles and cryptography, threats and attacks including AI-related risks, secure architecture and resilience, security operations and incident response, and risk, vendor and compliance oversight. Every question is original and maps to CompTIA's current SY0-801 exam objectives.
What you'll study
Every section follows the official SY0-801 exam outline. Click a domain to see its sections.
Security principles, CIA, AAA and Zero Trust, control categories and types, change management and its documentation, then PKI, certificates, encryption, hashing, digital signatures and obfuscation.
Threat intel and vulnerability scoring, threat actors, phishing and social engineering, attack surfaces from endpoints and wireless to cloud and supply chain, malware and indicators of compromise, network, application and credential attacks, and AI threats.
Cloud and infrastructure models, architecture trade-offs, secure infrastructure design and Zero Trust access, data types, states, handling and compliance, plus sites, redundancy, power, backups and disaster recovery metrics.
Hardening and access controls, firewalls, IDS/IPS, endpoint and email security, asset and vulnerability management, monitoring tools, identity lifecycle, SSO, MFA and access models, automation and AI, incident response and evidence handling.
Security policies, standards and procedures, risk identification, analysis and treatment, vendor selection, agreements and monitoring, compliance and privacy, audits, penetration testing and security awareness training.
Study, Quiz, Exam
Read the concepts, practice in short rounds, then test yourself on a mock exam with targeted feedback on where you need to focus more. Every question is original and maps to the official SY0-801 outline.
Learn the concept first
Short study cards cover each section before you answer a single question.
Give every user, application and process the minimum rights its task needs and no more. Then a misused or compromised account can do only limited damage. Scope grants tightly: the specific resource, and read-only when the job only reads.
Ten-question rounds
Every answer explained. Score 80% and the next section unlocks.
A new web application needs to look up product prices in one table of a database server. That server also holds customer and payroll tables. The developer asks which database account the application should use.
Which choice BEST follows least privilege?
The application only needs to read one table, so its account should be able to do that and nothing more. If the application is compromised, the attacker gets only price data. The administrator's account or read access to every table would expose customer and payroll data. Write access to the price table goes beyond what a lookup needs.
Know exactly where to focus
Timed practice exams any time, with a study plan built from your mistakes.
What to expect on the SY0-801
Made for anyone stepping into cybersecurity, whether you're coming from IT support, networking or somewhere new. Hands-on experience helps, but it isn't required to take the exam.
Source: CompTIA Security+ Certification V8 (Coming Soon, Launching November 2026), checked October 16, 2026
Where this cert takes you
Real job titles where Security+ skills are the day-to-day work.
- SOC Analyst (Tier 1)
- Security Technician
- Junior Security Analyst
- IT Security Specialist
- Systems Administrator
- Network Security Technician
- Security Analyst
- SOC Analyst (Tier 2)
- Security Administrator
- Vulnerability Analyst
- Incident Responder
- Security Engineer
- Senior Security Analyst
- Senior Security Engineer
- Security Architect
- Threat Hunter
- Penetration Tester
- Security Operations Manager
Ranges based on BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics (May 2025) for Information Security Analysts: 10th percentile $75,090, median $129,180, 90th percentile $199,850. Pay varies by metro area and employer. Tier 1 SOC and technician titles are often counted under other occupations and can pay less. The first role in each column is the most common entry point.
Recommended ProCourse
A good course to pair with your cert study for learning hard tech skills while you study for your cert
Cyber Security & Operations
Harden servers, hunt threats, investigate breaches. Learn nmap, tshark, auditd, and forensic analysis, then move into SOC operations, compliance frameworks, and security architecture. Defend systems that matter.
View CurriculumQuestions
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Get CertPrepCompTIA, Security+, Network+ and CySA+ are trademarks or registered trademarks of CompTIA, Inc. opnf.sh is not affiliated with, sponsored by or endorsed by CompTIA. All practice questions are original and are not taken from any CompTIA exam.