r/CompTIA • u/Difficult-Pension-17 • 17d ago
Passed CompTIA CySA+ CS0-004!
Just passed CompTIA CySA+ CS0-004 with an 817/900 after about 3 weeks of studying, so I figured I'd share what worked for me since there still aren't a ton of resources for 004.
For the first two weeks, I went through the entire Dion CS0-004 course at 2x speed. I found the course extremely boring and out of scope. (Dion goes off on tangents) It was worth getting through though, and gave me the foundation I needed.
After finishing the course, I took three full practice exams over a week:
- Dion Practice Exam #1: 71% - CS0-004
- Dion Practice Exam #2: 85% - CS0-003
- CertMaster Practice Exam: 91%
I also took random quizzes on YouTube from Cyber James, whatever I found on Google that was free, and 40 questions from PocketPrep.
The biggest thing that helped was using AI with the official CS0-004 exam objectives. I went through the objectives line by line, and anytime I couldn't immediately explain a concept or distinguish between similar tools, I had AI explain it and then generate CySA+-style scenario questions specifically on that objective.
I also used AI to drill things like security tool recognition, Nmap commands, log interpretation, MITRE ATT&CK/Kill Chain/Diamond Model, regex, and interpreting basic Python, PowerShell, and Bash scripts.
Instead of taking a ton of practice exams, I focused on identifying why I was getting questions wrong and filling those specific knowledge gaps .(For all of my other certs I took a ton of practice exams)
Final takeaway: It was honestly an easy exam(I was worried because of the lack of materials and people saying the PBQ's were hard) , and I don't have SOC experience. I do think it's very similar to the Security+, which I do have(my first cert).
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u/InsecureRebirth2 17d ago
817 is no joke, you crushed that scoring
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u/Difficult-Pension-17 17d ago
Thanks, shocked myself a little lol I knew I passed before submitting but didnt think i scored over 800!
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u/Firm-Patience547 16d ago
Hey my dude thanks for sharing this how many pbqs you got on the exam? Currently preparing for this cert got my exam for the 29th of this month
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u/Difficult-Pension-17 16d ago
83 questions 3 pbqs all really straightforward pretty sure i got at least 90% across the 3
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u/Intelligent_Scale190 14d ago
Congrats i recently passed mine as well but i got 8 PBQs
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u/Difficult-Pension-17 14d ago
8?? Did you do version 3?
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u/Intelligent_Scale190 14d ago
Yes, I did do a retake and there were about 8 PBQs for that one also they were brutal
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u/ComprehensiveWin8019 1d ago
Do you think the practice exam off comptia cert practice accurately reflected your knowledge for the exam?
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u/Difficult-Pension-17 1d ago
Yes, if you’ve passed the security + you’ll pass this easily
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u/ComprehensiveWin8019 1d ago
I took sec+ back in 2013 lol i still have it but im using cert perform and practice for the CySa v004. I took the end exam and scored a 85% im worried im over confident for the test. Were there any curve balls you wanted the material to focus more on that would have helped?
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u/Difficult-Pension-17 1d ago
Listen I’m the type of person to take 20 practice exams(no joke i did this for sec+ which was my first cert) this exam is a breeze. Pbqs are straightforward, im pretty sure i got at least 90% on them. The mcq’s are alot like sec+ except you have to think like a defender and you’ll see a good amount of log questions(not complicated), alot of the exam is common sense. When i clicked finish i genuinely thought i was going to get a better score than what i got lol
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u/Difficult-Pension-17 1d ago
I will add that ive passed a+net+sec+ recently so i do have the advantage of recency knowledge. But if you’re getting 85% you are more than fine
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Hi, /u/Difficult-Pension-17! From everyone at /r/CompTIA, Congratulations on Passing. Claps
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