Difference between CCNA Security, CCNP Security, and CCIE Security
The CCNA, CCNP, and CCIE are certifications from one of the leading networking solutions providing company, the CISCO SYSTEMS INC. The company has been consistently powering security in Internet-enabled communications through a variety of its products and the most important among them is the certifications that it offers. Cisco categorizes its certificates into 5 basic cadres and they are as follows.
- Entry level certificates.
- Associate level certificates.
- Professional level certificates.
- Expert level certificates.
- Architect level certificates.
Cisco is not only focusing on the internet or network security but also it has certificates in other fields such as telecommunications equipment, high-technology services, etc. As of now, let us focus on the security related certifications from Cisco i.e. CCNA, CCNP, and CCIE.
These certifications guarantee one to place him or her in a networking security related job and higher your proficiency the higher the chances of a great job! As they are from a trusted and widely established networking solution providing company, the Cisco, these certifications are accepted worldwide in most multi-national companies without a second thought!
Before we go to what these certificates actually are, let us become familiar with what those above-mentioned levels mean. As you have guessed, they are nothing but directly related to the level of knowledge that the person owns with respect to the Internet networking and security.
- The Entry level certificates just provide an overall knowledge of the networking concepts and are much helpful for those starting their career in networking. You can also go for it if you still do not have an idea of the networking concepts and wishes to know it for an effective internet communication. Some of the entry level certificates from Cisco are CCENT and CCT.
- The Associate level certifications provide an overall idea of the network setup and the troubleshooting processes. The candidates with this certificate can easily go ahead and frame a design for networking taught on topics such as how to troubleshoot and how to come up with better solutions. Cisco provides a vast number of certifications in this category and some of them are CCDA, CCNA Cloud, CCNA Collaboration, CCNA Data Center, CCNA Industrial, CCNA Routing & Switching, CCNA Security, CCNA Service Provider, and CCNA Wireless.
- The Professional level certifications are slightly advanced in its arena and it imparts strong subject knowledge to the networking solutions seeking candidates. With the vast coverage of technologies and by providing good knowledge in networking skills, these certificates can earn great jobs apart from a being a professional in your field. Some of the professional level certifications from Cisco are CCDP, CCNP Cloud, CCNP Collaboration, CCNP Data Center, CCNP Routing & Switching, CCNP Security, CCNP Service Provider, and CCNP Wireless.
- The Expert level certifications are in great demand across the world and can get you high paying jobs as well. These certificates are capable of imparting expert level knowledge in the networking fields and in the related communication processes. Some of the expert level certificates from Cisco are CCDE, CCIE Collaboration, CCIE Data Center, CCIE Routing & Switching, CCIE Security, CCIE Service Provider, and CCIE Wireless.
- The Architect level certificate is the ultimate level among all the certificates from the Cisco and the individual with such a certificate would be capable of solving the growing global demands of any multinational company. If you earn this certificate, then you potentially translate the business concepts into technical ones that too in an evolutionary manner. CCAr is the only Architect level certificate that Cisco offers at present.
CCNA Security:
CCNA stands for Cisco Certified Network Associate and it can be earned in a variety of domains such as Cloud, Collaboration, Data Center, Industrial, Routing & Switching, Security, Service Provider, and Wireless. Among these, the CCNA security certification provides all the security related knowledge such as safeguarding the network, installation process, troubleshooting, etc. As we have seen earlier, it comes under the Associate category of the Cisco certifications. Therefore, the candidate seeking it should have finished a certification from the lower categories. Cisco calls it as a prerequisite and we shall discuss in detail about those certifications in the coming texts.
- Prerequisite certifications for CCNA Security:
The candidate before taking the CCNA security certification should have earned at least one of the valid below mentioned certifications.
- CCENT or
- CCNA Routing & Switching or
- Any CCIE Certification.
- What it covers?
This certification covers a variety of security related topics such as SIEM technology, Cloud Systems & Virtual Network Topologies, BYOD (Bring Your own Device