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Cybersecurity Certification Learning Roadmap

A suggested path that ties this repo's hubs together — from systems-administration fundamentals to a privileged-access / blue-team specialisation, with offensive, cloud, and senior tracks alongside. It connects the WALLIX/PAM, CEH, and adjacent-cert material into one journey.

This is suggested guidance, not a prescriptive or official path — order it to your goals and employer. Certification specifics change; verify on each provider's site. No salary/demand figures are asserted here.

Learning objectives

  • See how the certifications relate (entry → specialise → senior).
  • Know which repo section supports each stage.

The path

flowchart TD
    F["Foundations<br/>this repo: foundations/<br/>+ prerequisites/<br/>(Linux · Windows/AD ·<br/>networking · crypto)"] --> SP["CompTIA Security+<br/>vendor-neutral entry"]
    SP --> DEF["Defensive / identity"]
    SP --> SOC["Blue team / SOC<br/>CySA+"]
    SP --> OFF["Offensive"]
    SP --> CLOUD["Cloud security<br/>AZ-500 / AWS Security"]
    DEF --> WALLIX["WALLIX / PAM<br/>WCA-P → WCP-P → WCE-P<br/>(+ IAG · IDaaS · OT tracks)"]
    OFF --> CEH["CEH + PenTest+<br/>(knowledge / methodology)"]
    CEH --> HANDSON["PNPT → OSCP<br/>(hands-on offensive)"]
    WALLIX --> SENIOR["CISSP<br/>senior / managerial"]
    SOC --> SENIOR
    HANDSON --> SENIOR
    CLOUD --> SENIOR

Stage → repo resources

Stage What & why In this repo
0 · Foundations The infrastructure PAM and security sit on foundations/ · prerequisites/ · protocols/
1 · Entry Broad, vendor-neutral baseline (Security+) Security+ hub (the 5 domains)
2a · Identity / PAM Specialise in privileged access (the repo's core) WALLIX hub · PAM/Bastion track · deep dives
2b · Blue team / SOC Detection, monitoring & incident response CySA+ hub
2c · Offensive Understand the attacker (knowledge → hands-on) CEH hub → PenTest+ → PNPT → OSCP
2d · Cloud Secure cloud identities & workloads adjacent-certs/cloud-security.md · CEH cloud module
3 · Senior Breadth & management adjacent-certs/cissp.md

🧰 Where to practice each stage: see learning-platforms.md — the best platforms (free & paid) for every step, from Professor Messer and TryHackMe to Hack The Box, PortSwigger, blue-team ranges, and cloud labs.

How the offensive and defensive sides reinforce each other

A PAM engineer who understands the attack chain and credential attacks configures better controls; a pentester who understands how PAM brokers and records sessions writes more useful findings. The two hubs are deliberately cross-linked — see the attack → defense matrix for the concrete mapping of attack techniques to the controls that stop them.

Sources