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CISSP - Certified Information Systems Security Professional
The CISSP is ISC2's computer-adaptive certification exam for experienced security practitioners, managers, and executives: a 3-hour, 100-150-item CAT exam on eight security domains, delivered at Pearson VUE test centers worldwide, with a 5-year work-experience requirement for full certification.
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Questions100-150 items (CAT variable-length exam)
Testing time3 hours
ScoringPassing grade of 700 out of 1,000 points
Exam feeUSD 749 standard registration (Americas, Asia Pacific, Middle East, Africa, and all other regions); EUR 719.04 in EMEA; GBP 606.69 in the United Kingdom; pricing and taxes are based on the location of exam administration
Prep options
Study resources for CISSP
Independent prep
Courses and study resources
Exam overview
What to know before choosing your prep
- Who runs it
- ISC2
- Category
- Cybersecurity
- Current version
- CISSP Certification Exam Outline, effective April 15, 2024 (current English outline; the Chinese, Japanese, German, and Spanish outline PDFs remain the May 2021 edition)
- Where it applies
- Global
- Exam languages
- English, German, Spanish, Japanese, Simplified Chinese
- Score scale
- Scaled score out of 1,000 points
- Testing provider
- Pearson VUE (ISC2 Authorized PPC and PVTC Select testing centers)
- Format
- Computer-based Computerized Adaptive Testing (CAT); multiple choice plus advanced item types (multimedia, calculation, order response, drag/hotspot, scenario-based, video-based)
- Availability
- Year-round by appointment at Pearson VUE test centers; Simplified Chinese-language CISSP appointments only during annual windows (March 1-31, June 1-30, September 1-30, December 1-31); the purchased exam must be scheduled and taken within 365 days
- Results
- Unofficial pass/fail result provided by the Pearson VUE proctor at test-center checkout; official result emailed by ISC2 (no numeric score provided); official results can occasionally be delayed approximately six to eight weeks for psychometric analysis
- Remote testing
- Not available
Exam structure
100-150 multiple-choice and advanced innovative items delivered adaptively (CAT) across eight domains: Security and Risk Management (16%), Asset Security (10%), Security Architecture and Engineering (13%), Communication and Network Security (13%), Identity and Access Management (13%), Security Assessment and Testing (12%), Security Operations (13%), and Software Development Security (10%)
Where rules vary
Worldwide vendor certification exam administered at Pearson VUE test centers internationally; only the price varies by region
Eligibility
5 years of cumulative, full-time work experience in two or more of the eight CISSP domains; up to 1 year may be satisfied by a post-secondary degree in computer science/IT or an ISC2-approved credential (only one year waivable); candidates without the experience may pass the exam and become an Associate of ISC2, with 6 years to earn the required experience (endorsement by an ISC2 certified professional required after passing)
Retake policy
30 test-free days after the first attempt, 60 test-free days after the second, and 90 test-free days after the third and each subsequent attempt; maximum of 4 attempts within any 12-month period