Chapter 2: The Common Body of Knowledge (CBK)

In This Chapter

• Getting up close and personal with the CBK

• Reviewing the ten domains of information security

• Understanding knowledge objectives and study topics

Overview

The Common Body of Knowledge (CBK) defines a basic and common knowledge base for all security professionals. This is collectively referred to as the ten domains of information security. The CBK also provides minimum knowledge requirements for the Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) exam. Although these knowledge requirements are analogous to the test objectives, they are distinctly different. For one thing, the test objectives require a candidate to perform specific tasks or demonstrate skill with a specific technology, while the CBK is relatively abstract, and changes little over time.

The CBK is periodically updated by the CBK Committee, which is appointed by the International Information Systems Security Certifications Consortium (ISC) ² Board of Directors.

The ten domains of information security, as defined in the CBK, are described below and can be found online at www.isc2.org.