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PODCAST

Certified: The CompTIA Security+ Audio Course

Dr. Jason Edwards

Certified - Security+ 701 is your completely free audio companion for mastering the CompTIA Security+ SY0-701 certification exam. Developed by BareMetalCyber.com, this immersive Audio Course transforms every domain of the official exam objectives into clear, practical, and exam-ready lessons you can learn anywhere—whether commuting, exercising, or studying at home. Each episode delivers focused explanations, real-world examples, and proven study strategies designed to build confidence and help you

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All Episodes

7:01

Secure Communication and Remote Access (Domain 3)

Certified: The CompTIA Security+ Audio Course ·

2025/06/15

As remote work and distributed systems become the norm, securing communication across potentially hostile networks is more important than ever. In this episode, we explore secure communication methods including Virtual Private Networks (VPNs), TLS encryption, and IPSec tunneling. We discuss how VPNs provide confidentiality and integrity over public connections, while TLS protects browser-based and API traffic by encrypting sessions end-to-end. We also examine remote access tools and

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7:07

Firewalls and Security Gateways (Domain 3)

Certified: The CompTIA Security+ Audio Course ·

2025/06/15

Firewalls are one of the oldest and most trusted tools in network defense, but today’s environments require more than just simple packet filtering. In this episode, we dive into the evolution of firewall technologies, from traditional layer 3 firewalls to next-generation firewalls (NGFWs) that inspect application-layer traffic, enforce content policies, and integrate with threat intelligence feeds. We also cover Web Application Firewalls (WAFs), which specifically protect web applications

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6:45

Port Security and Authentication Protocols (Domain 3)

Certified: The CompTIA Security+ Audio Course ·

2025/06/15

Every port on your network is a potential doorway, and port security ensures those doors stay locked unless explicitly authorized. In this episode, we examine how technologies like 802.1X enforce port-level access control, requiring users or devices to authenticate before they can transmit any data. We explore how protocols such as EAP (Extensible Authentication Protocol) and RADIUS (Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service) work behind the scenes to validate credentials and enforce

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7:31

Load Balancers and Sensors (Domain 3)

Certified: The CompTIA Security+ Audio Course ·

2025/06/15

Load balancers and network sensors are often associated with performance and visibility—but they are just as critical to your security architecture. In this episode, we explore how load balancers not only distribute traffic to prevent bottlenecks but can also terminate SSL connections, enforce session persistence, and isolate backend services from direct public exposure. These features allow them to act as security control points, especially in high-availability and internet-facing

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8:25

Device Attributes and Network Appliances (Domain 3)

Certified: The CompTIA Security+ Audio Course ·

2025/06/15

Security isn’t just about policies and firewalls—it’s also about the capabilities and placement of the physical and virtual devices enforcing them. In this episode, we explore key device attributes such as active vs. passive monitoring, inline vs. tap-based deployment, and the role each plays in threat detection and response. Active devices like intrusion prevention systems (IPS) interact with and stop traffic, while passive tools like network sniffers or intrusion detection systems (IDS)

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6:31

Connectivity and Failure Modes (Domain 3)

Certified: The CompTIA Security+ Audio Course ·

2025/06/15

Connectivity powers modern organizations, but with it comes risk—especially when failure modes are not considered in the security design. In this episode, we explore what happens when devices or services fail, and how the design of fail-open vs. fail-closed systems can either preserve functionality or protect data. A fail-open configuration may allow traffic to flow even when security services are offline, prioritizing availability but leaving gaps in enforcement. A fail-closed design, on

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7:28

Infrastructure Security Foundations (Domain 3)

Certified: The CompTIA Security+ Audio Course ·

2025/06/15

Securing infrastructure starts with design decisions about where and how devices are placed, how data flows, and where trust boundaries begin and end. In this episode, we focus on device placement and network zoning, exploring how separating front-end, back-end, and management traffic can prevent attackers from using one compromised segment to access others. Concepts like jump servers, demilitarized zones (DMZs), and out-of-band management networks help isolate critical systems and limit

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7:52

Architecture Security Considerations (Part 3) (Domain 3)

Certified: The CompTIA Security+ Audio Course ·

2025/06/15

In this final installment on architectural considerations, we focus on risk transference, ease of recovery, and the practical realities of patch availability and compute resources. Risk transference involves shifting some security or operational responsibilities to third parties—such as cloud providers, insurers, or managed service vendors—through contracts or service-level agreements (SLAs). While this can offload liability, it must be done with clear understanding of what remains within

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8:10

Architecture Security Considerations (Part 2) (Domain 3)

Certified: The CompTIA Security+ Audio Course ·

2025/06/15

Responsiveness, scalability, and ease of deployment are three more pillars that heavily influence secure architecture decisions, especially in environments where adaptability is key. In this episode, we examine how responsive systems are designed to detect, isolate, and recover from security incidents quickly—often using real-time monitoring, automation, and predefined response playbooks. We then look at scalability, which ensures that systems can grow to meet increasing demand without

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7:44

Architecture Security Considerations (Part 1) (Domain 3)

Certified: The CompTIA Security+ Audio Course ·

2025/06/15

Designing secure systems means weighing a variety of architectural considerations, and in this episode, we begin by focusing on availability, resilience, and cost. We explain how availability is maintained through redundancy, failover configurations, and distributed services, while resilience involves the system’s ability to recover gracefully from disruptions without loss of integrity or function. These traits are not accidental—they must be engineered deliberately into infrastructure

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7:00

High Availability Architectures (Domain 3)

Certified: The CompTIA Security+ Audio Course ·

2025/06/15

Availability is one of the core tenets of cybersecurity, and in mission-critical environments, downtime is simply not an option. In this episode, we focus on high availability (HA) architectures—design strategies that ensure systems remain operational even when components fail. We examine techniques like clustering, load balancing, redundancy, failover mechanisms, and geographic dispersion, all of which contribute to resilience and uptime. We explain the difference between active-active and

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7:45

Specialized Architecture Models (Domain 3)

Certified: The CompTIA Security+ Audio Course ·

2025/06/15

Some systems require specialized architectural models due to their operational roles, legacy constraints, or real-time performance needs. In this episode, we examine security implications for environments such as Internet of Things (IoT) networks, industrial control systems (ICS), SCADA platforms, and embedded systems that power everything from medical devices to smart thermostats. These environments often include devices with limited update capabilities, hardcoded credentials, or minimal

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7:38

On-Premises, Centralized, and Decentralized...

Certified: The CompTIA Security+ Audio Course ·

2025/06/15

Security must adapt to the architecture of the environment it protects, and that starts with understanding how infrastructure is organized. In this episode, we compare on-premises, centralized, and decentralized architectures, explaining the security implications of each. Centralized models offer streamlined control, simpler updates, and more consistent enforcement—but they also concentrate risk in a single point of failure. Decentralized architectures distribute resources and

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7:46

Network Infrastructure Security Models (Domain 3)

Certified: The CompTIA Security+ Audio Course ·

2025/06/15

Modern networks are no longer simple, flat environments—they are segmented, layered, and increasingly software-defined. In this episode, we explore different infrastructure security models, beginning with physical isolation such as air-gapped systems used in critical industrial or military settings, and moving into logical segmentation using VLANs, subnets, and access control mechanisms. We also discuss software-defined networking (SDN), which decouples the control plane from the data

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8:09

Cloud Architecture and Responsibilities (Domain 3)

Certified: The CompTIA Security+ Audio Course ·

2025/06/15

Cloud computing changes the game for infrastructure design and security responsibility, requiring organizations to understand not just how services work—but who is accountable for securing them. In this episode, we examine the shared responsibility model, where cloud providers manage the security of the cloud (hardware, physical hosts, hypervisors), and customers are responsible for securing their own data, access controls, and application configurations within it. We break down how

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8:20

Introduction to Domain Three — Security Architecture

Certified: The CompTIA Security+ Audio Course ·

2025/06/15

Cybersecurity isn’t just about stopping threats as they happen—it’s also about designing systems that are harder to attack in the first place. And that’s the focus of Domain Three: Security Architecture. This domain helps you think like a builder. It’s about how we construct networks, applications, and environments that are secure by design, not just protected after deployment. In this episode, we’re going to introduce Domain Three and walk through the key themes you’ll need to

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7:14

System Hardening Techniques (Part 3) (Domain 2)

Certified: The CompTIA Security+ Audio Course ·

2025/06/15

In the final part of our system hardening series, we tackle some of the most overlooked but impactful practices: disabling unnecessary ports and services, replacing default credentials, and removing unused software. Each of these actions reduces the number of potential entry points an attacker can exploit. Open ports often expose services that are unused or unprotected, while default usernames and passwords remain one of the most frequently exploited weaknesses. Unused or forgotten software

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6:38

System Hardening Techniques (Part 2) (Domain 2)

Certified: The CompTIA Security+ Audio Course ·

2025/06/15

Continuing our exploration of system hardening, this episode focuses on host-based firewalls and intrusion prevention systems (HIPS), which defend individual devices by monitoring and controlling inbound and outbound network traffic. We explain how host firewalls add a granular level of defense that complements perimeter firewalls, allowing policies to be enforced per device or application. HIPS extends this capability by identifying malicious behavior at the system level and taking

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6:57

System Hardening Techniques (Part 1) (Domain 2)

Certified: The CompTIA Security+ Audio Course ·

2025/06/15

System hardening is about reducing the attack surface by eliminating unnecessary features, closing open ports, and enforcing strict policies across endpoints, servers, and network devices. In this episode, we begin our multi-part discussion on hardening with encryption and endpoint protection. We explain how disk encryption, volume-level security, and full-disk encryption (FDE) protect data at rest, and how tools like EDR (Endpoint Detection and Response) platforms provide active defense

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6:38

Configuration Enforcement and Decommissioning (Domain 2)

Certified: The CompTIA Security+ Audio Course ·

2025/06/15

Keeping systems secure isn’t just about building them right—it’s about making sure they stay that way, and knowing how to shut them down properly when they’re no longer needed. In this episode, we focus on configuration enforcement through tools like configuration management databases (CMDBs), secure baselines, and automated compliance checking systems that prevent drift and ensure security settings remain intact over time. Equally important is secure decommissioning, which involves

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222 results

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