Course Outline
Accredited through APMG International, certified in the United Kingdom by the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) and listed as qualified cyber training by Department of Homeland Security Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (DHS CISA) in the U.S., the NCSP® training programme teaches individuals and organisations how to engineer, operationalise and continually improve a NIST Cybersecurity Framework Programme.
This is a self-paced 12-hour online video training course, giving you the ability to work at a pace that suits you. The course is aimed at those who will play an active role in the companies NIST Cyber Security Framework program, allowing you to incrementally improve and develop your framework, ultimately providing you with a more secure IT framework.
The NIST Cyber Security Professional (NCSP®) Practitioner certification program is designed to teach IT, Engineering, Operations and Business Risk professionals how to design, implement, operate and continually improve a NIST Cyber Security Framework program that will enable enterprises to identify, protect, detect, respond and recover from cyber-attacks.
Course Organization
The course is organized as follows:
Chapter 1
Course Introduction introduces the course and its conduct, which is followed by a lesson that sets the stage for the rest of the material. Lessons in this chapter include:
- Course Organization
- Setting the Stage
Chapter 2
Digital Transformation introduces students to digital transformation from the perspective of the cybersecurity practitioner. Lessons in this chapter include:
- DX as a Practitioner
- DX in the Context of Cybersecurity
- Cybersecurity as a DX Catalyst
Chapter 3
Threat Landscape introduces the agile and rapidly evolving nature of the threat landscape. It also provides an analysis of well-known breaches as a learning opportunity. Lessons in this chapter include:
- Threat Actors: Agile & Creative
- Attacks
- Challenges
- Organizational Response to Threat Landscape
- Absolute Prevention Not Possible
Chapter 4
The Controls provides an overall approach to control selection for the organization. It presents a natural order to control implementation divided into three areas. Lessons in the chapter include:
- Initiation & Basic
- Foundation
- Organizational & Recovery
Chapter 5
Adopt & Adapt presents an overview of the necessary governance, management and cultural changes for a successful cybersecurity program. Lessons in this chapter include:
- The Context of Adopt & Adapt
- Cybersecurity & Culture
- Where We Are?
Chapter 6
Adaptive Way of Working introduces and approach an adaptive way of working. The overall goal is to work for shorter durations to resolve small increments of work. Lessons in this chapter include:
- Introduction to Adaptive Way to Work
- How to Get Started
Chapter 7
Rapid Adoption & Rapid Adaptation FastTrack™ applies the information in the previous chapters to a FastTrack™ to the adoption and adaption of the implementation of a cybersecurity profile.
Lessons in this chapter include:
- Rapid Adoption
- Rapid Adaptation
Chapter 8
CIIS as a Practice provides the student with the understanding that cybersecurity isn’t a “1-and-done” operation. It requires continual improvement and implementation. It includes an overview of the Cybersecurity Maturity Model (CMMC) that is applicable for the Department of Defense (DoD) non-classified suppliers and is likely to see wider acceptance (beyond the DoD). Lessons in this chapter include:
- Ongoing Practice of Cybersecurity
- NIST 7-step Improvement
- Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC)
- Integrate Cybersecurity
Access to the course lasts for 12 months allowing delegates to complete the course and exam in their own time.
CySec Professionals Ltd is an APMG International Accredited Training Organisation (ATO). This NCSP® Practitioner Certificate course is NCSC Certified Training.
Exam
Exam fees are included in the price.
Exam Format
- 65 questions
- 120 minute exam
- Pass Mark – 60% (39 out of 65 marks)
- Closed book
- Online, proctored exam
- Paper based, proctored classroom exam delivery is available on request
This is a closed book exam with sixtyfive (65) multiple-choice questions with a single correct answer from 4-choices (A, B, C, D).
Questions may appear in any of the following forms (sample, not an exhaustive list):
- Which of the following is true, correct, most correct?
- Which of the following statements is NOT correct?
- Which of the following statements addresses X?
- How would you show Y?
- What is…?
- What is missing from…?
- _____ is a correct way to…?
- How would you describe…?
- How would you explain…?
- What is the main idea of…?
- Which is the best choice…?
Access to the course lasts for 12 months allowing delegates to complete the course and exam in their own time.
NCSP® eLearning Testimonials
“Sitting the NCSP® online courses and taking the exams has allowed us to re-model our business to not only offer better cyber security solutions, but more importantly improve our communication with clients and assist them in implementing a proper cybersecurity framework based on the NIST-CSF.”
JB, Cybersecurity Consultant (Consultancy Sector), UK – NCSP® self-paced, eLearning delegate
“I will like to appreciate the team at cybersecurity-professionals.com who have put this course together it is a great course, it was very really well structured, highly informative and the course materials were excellent. I would highly recommend the NCSP® programme to all those in or looking to start a career in cyber.”
AN, Director of Information Technology (IT Sector), Kenya – NCSP® self-paced, eLearning delegate
“After recently completing the online NIST Cyber Security Professional (NCSP®) Foundation Certificate and being welcomed into the online mentoring community, I would like to provide the fantastic feedback that this course deserves. The program was carefully designed and allowed me to progress at a speed that suited me as it was self-paced, this suited myself as a learner, allowing me to plan my study around work and family commitments. I found that all Chapters where well-presented and easy to understand and provided a solid foundation for understanding Cyber Risk, the NIST Cyber Security Framework alongside the core functions and Implementation Tiers. I now have a firm grasp of what I learnt and look forward to sitting the exam and progressing onto the next qualification as a NCSP® Practitioner. I have certainly benefited from completing this programme. When you have tangible end results after taking a course, I can conclude this was a great one!”
NM, Senior Cyber Security Analyst (Retail Sector), UK – NCSP® self-paced, eLearning delegate
“Having recently completed the NIST Cyber Security Professional (NCSP®) Foundation course, I found it informative, well-structured and easy to follow. The course has given me a great understanding of how the NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) can be applied and how its core elements work. The course set me really well for the APMG exam and I achieved the required score without any real issues or gaps in my knowledge and I put this down to the online learning that was supported with comprehensive study documents and lessons plans. I would highly recommend both the course and the learning provider who gave me support throughout, answering many questions on my next steps. I’m now looking to complete the NCSP® Practitioners Course in the coming weeks!”
JO, Project Manager (Financial Sector), UK – NCSP® self-paced, eLearning delegate
“Having been keen to break into the Cyber Security industry as a change of career direction, my research led me to the NIST Cyber Security Professional (NCSP) Programme. The Foundation course is a great entry level introduction to this framework and has already landed me my first contract. As a service leaver looking to secure my civilian future in cyber, this course was exactly what I was looking for. A great introduction to the NIST Cybersecurity Framework and I am already planning to book the Practitioner level course.”
AB, IT Business Analyst (Financial Sector), UK – NCSP® self-paced, eLearning delegate
“I’ve been doing a lot of security transformation work across the UK public sector and used the NIST Cybersecurity frameworks (NIST-CSF) as a reference to validate levels of capability and provide clear roadmaps for improvement. I found the on-line videos and PDF workbooks to be an excellent way to build my knowledge and interpretation of the NIST-CSF and how it can be practically applied. The balance of information about security controls and risks, alongside Digital Transformation and agile way of working through incremental improvements really resonated with me and my experience in delivering IT services across the UK public sector.”
JK, Consultancy Practice Owner (Consulting Sector), UK – NCSP® self-paced, eLearning delegate
“I was well prepared and passed the NCSP® Boot Camp exam on the first try. The NCSP® courses helped me learn the knowledge, skills, and capabilities to engineer, operationalize, and continually improve a cybersecurity program based on the NIST cybersecurity framework. Thank you, for all your help! I will highly recommend the NCSP® courses to my colleagues across the globe.”
NK, Leading global insurance organisation with operations in more than 80 countries and jurisdictions – NCSP® self-paced, eLearning delegate
Access to the course lasts for 12 months allowing delegates to complete the course and exam in their own time.
CySec Professionals Ltd is an APMG International Accredited Training Organisation (ATO) and is a provider of NCSC Certified Training.
