AWS Certified Security - Specialty

Exam overview

Category

Specialty

Exam duration

170 minutes

Exam format

65 questions; either multiple choice or multiple response.

Cost

300 USD. Visit Exam pricing for additional cost information.

Test in-person or online

Pearson VUE testing center or online proctored exam.

Languages offered

English, French (France), German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese (Brazil), Simplified Chinese, and Spanish (Latin America).

Schedule an exam

Review the SCS-C01 exam guide which contains the recommended AWS knowledge, content outline, and passing score for the certification exam.

Download the exam guide

Key FAQs to help you get started

• Who should take this exam?

  AWS Certified Security - Specialty is intended for experienced individuals who have five years of IT security experience in designing and implementing security solutions and two or more years of hands-on experience in securing AWS workloads. This certification complements the skills and expertise required for multiple job roles across cloud architecture, database, networking, and DevSecOps.
  

• How will the AWS Certified Security - Specialty help my career?

  This certification can build your credibility and position you as a trusted advisor to your stakeholders and customers. As an AWS Certified Security Specialist, you can bring best practices and security solutions that meet organizations’ and customers’ unique needs. Job listings requiring this certification have increased 73% (Oct 2021 - Sept 2022) per Lightcast™ October 2022.
  

• What certifications should I earn before taking this exam?

  You are not required to earn any specific certifications prior to preparing for this certification. However, candidates commonly earn the AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate and/or AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Professional before attempting the AWS Certified Security - Specialty exam.
  

• What AWS Certification(s) should I earn after attaining this certification?

  The AWS Certified DevOps Engineer - Professional and the AWS Certified Advanced Networking - Specialty are additional certifications that other cloud professionals have earned to advance further in roles like Networking Engineer or DevSecOps Engineer.
  

Prepare for the exam

• Step 1: Get to know the exam and exam-style questions

  • Review the SCS-C01 exam guide »
  • Sign up for a free AWS Skill Builder account and take the AWS Certified Security - Specialty Official Practice Question Set »

• Step 2: Learn about exam topics in AWS Skill Builder

  • Enroll in self-paced digital courses where you need to fill gaps in foundational knowledge. Recommended courses include: 
    • Getting Started with AWS Security, Identity, and Compliance »
    • AWS Security Fundamentals (Second Edition) »
      
  • Get hands-on with AWS Builder Labs and other interactive content to apply your skills in an AWS Management Console sandbox, with labs. Subscription Required.
    
  • Leverage gaming to prepare for your AWS Certification with AWS Cloud Quest (Security role). Subscription required.
  • Review white papers:
    • Security Pillar – AWS Well Architected Framework »
    • Amazon Web Services: Overview of Security Processes »
    • AWS Key Management Best Practices »
    • AWS Security Incident Response Guide »
    • AWS Best Practices for DDoS Resiliency »
    • Building a Scalable and Secure Multi-VPC AWS Network Infrastructure »
    • Security & Compliance Quick Reference Guide »

  • Technical resources:
    • AWS Security Hub »
    • AWS Identity & Access Management (IAM) »
    • AWS Single Sign-On »
    • AWS Organizations »
    • Amazon GuardDuty »
    • Amazon Inspector »
    • AWS Config »
    • AWS Shield »
    • AWS CloudTrail »
    • AWS Web Application Firewall (WAF) »
    • Amazon Macie »
    • AWS Key Management Service (KMS) »
    • AWS Certificate Manager »
    • AWS Secrets Manager »
    • Amazon Detective »
    • Amazon VPC »
    • AWS Direct Connect »
    • AWS Route 53 »
    • AWS Artifact »
      

  Select to expand list 

  Select to close list 

• Step 3: Prepare for your exam

  Enroll in a self-paced exam prep course »
  

• Classroom Training options

  Build your technical skills with this recommended course:

  • Security Engineering on AWS »
    

You are not required to take any specific AWS training as part of your exam prep. These are recommended steps you can follow to get ready for exam day.

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