CompTIA Security+ Practice Tests: Exam SY0-501 1st Edition, Kindle Edition

I am an IT Professional with 15 years of experience. Wanting a quick brush-up before knocking out the Network + and Security + exams. You know, the stuff that the Exam wants you to know, but you'll never actually use in the real world.I found the Network + version of this series (with a different author) extremely helpful. Had the questions & answers opened up side-by-side, and glancing back and forth, as a knowledge-check. Then taking notes on the few answers I was wrong about, for a final review just before the exam. Worked like a charm.Trying to do the same thing for the Security + and I've come across multiple answers that are... just plain wrong. With non-sensical explanations for why those answers were chosen. Not to mention the frustratingly large number of typos on the provided answers and explanations. Including typos in things like port numbers. Come on, man!To come across a question where the provided answer doesn't match your own knowledge, and then start to question yourself as to if your knowledge is deficient or the study guide is... That makes this become absolutely worthless as a study guide.

I found this book adequately useful, in that it gave me some more practice and reinforcement. But I found that the questions are a bit repetitive, and not as nuanced or complex as I was hoping for. This is in comparison to the practice questions on COMPTIA's certmaster, or Darril Gibson's end of book review questions. I found those to be much more trickier, although there weren't as many. The explanations provided were adequate as well. I would give this 3.5 starts if I could because they are on topic, and can't find this many questions elsewhere for this test (unless you want to risk getting some bogus test questions or randomware using those "dump" sites). But just know this is definitely just for additional practice questions. Buying the paperback version wasn't as useful for me as I thought because of my personal study regimen, and would buy the Kindle edition if I had to re-buy it.There is a website that gives you an online version of these questions so that you can do them online, and have them tracked and such, but its got issues also, such as the tool you use to generate a set of questions based on topic doesn't appear to work as designed. You simply get the first x number of questions on its list no matter what you choose. So for example, if you select 50 questions from Module 3, you get the first 50 questions from Module 1. The answers are also plagued with bugs so you get marked incorrect for the right answer making tracking your score incorrect and distracting.

After using the the same publisher (albeit with a different author) and successfully passing the Network + exam, naturally I felt compelled to use this product for the Security + exam. I was mistaken. The questions are too easy. While they may be helpful for a beginner, you're left with a false sense of confidence that is ill-prepared for the sophistry of CompTIA's exam. Only when you master answering a bunch of especially difficult, vague, and often convoluted trick questions quickly are you ready for the exam. In that regard, this product is just another mediocre example of the gamut of mostly early-stage study tools on the market.

Got all the major groups, but too general to be useful. Next time I'll someone else.

Great study tool. I can't say that this book in conjunction with the Sec+ Review Guide and Study Guide helped me pass the exam on the first try, but I can say that it showed me a lot of the types of questions I would see on the exam. Good luck to anyone attempting the Security+ exam!!

I loved all the questions, and I especially loved how CompTIA answered the questions. They give you the right answer, explain why the correct answer is the correct answer, and the reasoning as to why the incorrect answers were not the correct choices. It's the best practice test preparation that I've ever seen.

Failed the first time then I purchased this for extra study and passed. I used their online test bank it helps a lot.

The book prepares you well for the multiple choice questions but does not prepare you for the first 5 questions which are all drag and drop. After studying for 2 weeks with this book and no other study materials I passed my exam. I did not like how the questions were numbered 1 through 10. It made navigation difficult.

I passed the exam recently , good practice as an additional source of study

Very thorough review material. 98% helpful guide with the test choices.

This book is an excellent study guide. The book covers all the exam objectives and the answers to each question are strategically placed to really make you think. The only thing I didnt like about there book is that there are 5-6 major typos that throw you off a bit, Also some of the answers in the back dont explain exactly why that was the right answer as it just gives you a blanket definition.This book will help you pass the exam, no questions asked... If you have lots of experience, probably can pass even without reading any materials beforehand. For that reason, 5 stars.

Great resource

The book is split into 7 chapters; 6 on each section of the exam individually with a full suite of practice questions and 1 a simulated practice test. The 6 chapters cover:1. Threats, Attack and Vunerabilities2. Technologies and Tools3. Architecture and Design4. Identity and Access Management5. Risk Management6. Cryptography and PKIAll questions are multiple choice, which can make this feel a bit repetitive at times, but that is the style of the test.My partner and I both work in cybersecurity. Although we don't have a requirement to acquire the CompTIA Security+ qualification we found challenging ourselves with the practice questions useful for our day jobs (the qualification is more popular in the US with private and government agencies). Although there is some explanation for every answer in the back of the book, this sometimes doesn't go deep enough if you don't understand the subject matter sufficiently, so this is definitely isn't a full substitute to study guides or courses.