As the world is going more digital and more electronic devices are connected to the internet, analyzing the data from all of these devices allows organizations to get an insight into what is going on in these devices. More importantly for organizations with various devices from endpoints to servers and every other device, being able to have a centralized system for analyzing the monstrous amount of data is very important.
Splunk is a Big Data Analytics platform that helps in analyzing all of the data from the different data sources and brings it into a centralized platform for easy access and analysis. In regards to Cybersecurity, Splunk is a SIEM (Security Information and Event Management) platform that allows Security Analysts to easily analyze logs from various data sources being monitored by their organization.
After taking the Splunk Fundamentals Course (check out the blog post), the next logical step was to take the Splunk Core Certified User Certification.
Check out my YouTube Video covering how to Study and Pass this exam:
WHAT IS COVERED IN THE EXAM?
According to Splunk, these are the general guidelines for what to expect on the exam:
- Introduction to Splunk’s interface
- Basic searching
- Using fields in searches
- Search fundamentals
- Transforming commands
- Creating reports and dashboards
- Creating and using lookups
- Scheduled reports
- Alerts
- Using Pivot
For more details on the exam expectations, click here.
STUDY RESOURCES
Splunk Course
The free Splunk Fundamentals Course is quite sufficient for the course and I recommend going through it twice. Personally, the first time I went through it I took very detailed notes and did all the labs, and the second time, I just paid attention and studied the pdf provided by Splunk in accordance with the corresponding module. You can check out my blog on the Splunk Fundamentals Course here for what to expect.
Quizlet
Even though the Splunk Course was very sufficient, I wanted more resources to supplement so I found some Quizlet flashcards/quizzes to help me solidify the knowledge from the Splunk Course.
- Created by pvanderlinden: Splunk Core Certified User and Splunk Fundamentals 1
- Created by Nupe2NV: Splunk Certification
Udemy
Finally, I found this practice exam for sale on Udemy. This was a good practice exam and really helped me know what to expect in the exam. Do bear in mind that this practice exam had a lot of typos but if you bear that you should be fine and you’ll get the most of it. Find the Splunk Core Certified User Practice test by Vaga Notes here on Udemy.
EXAM EXPERIENCE & CONCLUSION
This was my first ever Splunk ever certification and just like all my other Certifications, I took it via Pearson Vue from the comfort of home. This was a not so difficult exam but I would not underestimate it. Splunk expects you to really understand the fundamental concepts and the exam will test you on that. Although, I’ve never worked with Splunk in an actual enterprise environment but I have used it in various lab scenarios and I also have work experience with two other SIEM Solutions in professional situations.
I hope to be able to move forward to the Splunk Core Certified Power User in the future and getting better with Splunk and various SIEM Solutions in general.
If you have any questions or need some more guidance with this exam, Join our Discord community and we’ll be glad to put you on the right track!
1 thought on “How to Pass: Splunk Core Certified User”
What PDF are you referring to?
“Personally, the first time I went through it I took very detailed notes and did all the labs, and the second time, I just paid attention and studied the pdf provided by Splunk in accordance with the corresponding module”