Level Effect

Look, I don't write reviews except for maybe some amazing food on Google now and again, but this is the most thorough and hand-on bootcamp you'll find. The instructors want to know you, teach you, and stop for your questions. It's not like college where you feel like a  number. The projects you do can be slightly redone and added to your resume/portfolio/blog. I'm coming from a soccer coach, Spanish Teacher, and data entry background, and the instructors will tell you straight up, "look, we've trained a prior farmer to do this, and they do it well now, so anyone can do it."

If you decide to do it, just dedicate some time each day and you'll be fine. I was going through a lot of personal things while in the bootcamp like a relative passing, breakup, COVID, you name it, and I still did my best to just sit down for about 2-4 hours a day and try to push forward. The instructors are there for you and want to know if you're falling behind or confused. They don't look down on you, they thrive on you feeling comfortable. 

Finally, I'll say this, in the next 3-4 months, you'll either have a Security+ or some other entry level cert, or you'll have 3-4 months of solid experience with several tools to analyze phishing emails, dissect network traffic, and take malware on your virtual machine and see what it's doing, how it originated etc. When you take the Sec+, it's multiple choice. And when we focus on how things actually work rather than just, oh which of these 4 things would be the right thing to do? 

I was in nursing school before this and dropped out because I just wasn't happy. But it was a lot of multiple choice questions, minimal practical things until "you're in the field and graduate", which is scary right? How would you train a nurse for 2 years, and then say, well now you'll really learn how to be a nurse after you graduate? Anyway, just an example. This bootcamp will make you ready to go get and do the job, pass a technical interview, do a few projects, get LinkedIn premium so you can message more people and see more analytics etc. 

Don't just go chase certs and ping recruiters. It just won't work, and even if you get an interview, the technical questions will be a bit too difficult. Imagine yourself explaining how something works, how you fixed it, and what can make it more preventable in the future. If you can do that, you'll set yourself apart from other people chasing certs. And food for thought, stay away from Simplilearn and bootcamps like that. They just charge you a few grand with some prerecorded lectures, a ECH cert that's super outdated and multiple choice questions. If you want this career change, like many of us do, you'll need guidance, mentors, support, actual instructors that want to help you, not just take your money. 

Level Effect isn't like any other boot camp you will find out there! This course has a primary focus on giving you real world hands-on experience. You will not only learn the basics of cybersecurity, but you will also be trained, and ready to take on your first entry-level position as a SOC analyst. You will be given different challenges every week that will push your limits, and help you grow in your knowledge, more than any other school could offer in 3 months. I had so much fun in my experience, and I couldn't recommend it enough!

I finished this course Dec 2021 and enjoyed my experience overall. This is my second cybersecurity bootcamp and every bootcamp curriculum is different.  This course focuses more on defensive best practices and triage within Windows environments. It's very well structured by introducing core fundamentals via live and video lectures, however the lab material is document based and a little underdeveloped compared to other educational platform options that are out there. The instructors are very knowledgeable and offer open office hours and make themselves available for students that have questions or require assistance. The course instructors all have intelligence backgrounds, but what makes this bootcamp different is the passion they have for the craft and desire to teach. This course benefits exponentially from Will Nissler and wouldn't be the same without him.

I am a graduate of Level Effect's CDA course. It is a 3 month intensive program that focuses on training entry-level people as a SOC Analyst 1. This course will expose you to real-world challenges  ranging from threat intelligence, system triage, network analysis, and malware analysis.  They teach you how to triage a system, write a report, and remediate the infected machine. You will have a lot of hands-on practice with known industry tools (e.g. Sysinternals Suite), report writing and triaging systems. By the end of course, you will be able to confidently triage a system and come up with a way to fix it.

The course includes video lecture, labs, group work and challenges.  All the instructors (Greg, Rob, Anthony and Will) are knowledgeable, personable, and available to answer any relevant questions. They continue to help even when you've graduated providing services like job support (e.g. providing mock interviews of what potential employers will ask you during an interview.) They are always open to suggestions and feedback to help improve their course and Foundry platform so don't be afraid to let them know!

I highly recommend this class to anyone interested in cybersecurity specifically if they want to become a SOC Analyst 1. The people behind Level Effect are awesome people and it was a great experience to learn from them.  They really helped grow my love and interest for cybersecurity. I'm so happy that I took the chance on their course and I wouldn't have gotten as far without them.

The short summary - 

1. CDAB initiates its trainees into the field of Cybersecurity and gives them the necessary material and skills to become employable as Security Analysts 

2. The course doesn't just give trainees technical skills; it also teaches them how to begin thinking like an Analyst 

2. CDAB content is taught by seasoned Cybersecurity professionals who are excellent instructors, and who are devoted to the success of their trainees 

3. All materials (such as VMs) are provided on an easy-to-use platform 

4. Online course material is available even after course completion 

The longer version + my personal experience - 

After deciding to pivot my career to Cybersecurity, I began looking into training courses that would prepare me to become employable in the field. I came across the CDAB after reading an endorsement of the course and its instructors on LinkedIn and decided to look into it. As I read the course outline and what the course would accomplish for the successful student (looking to enter the field of Cybersecurity), I thought to myself "well this looks too good to be true"... 

I reached out to a friend who works in a senior-level position in the field and spoke with him about the course - he helped me put together a list of questions and a general strategy that would help me verify, as best as I could, ahead of time that the CDAB would be worth investing. I then arranged a phone call with Greg. Greg answered all of my questions and also connected me with CDAB graduates who, like myself, did not come from an IT background. The CDAB graduates advised me that the course was designed for someone in my position, and that if I were to run into any difficulties I would only need to reach out to Greg and Rob who would assist me with what I'd need. Following these conversations, I decided to sign up. 

Not having an IT background, much of the subject matter in the first 3 weeks overwhelmed me. I reached out to Rob for advice and assistance, and we set a time each week during which he would help me break down key aspects of the content, ensuring that I would not fall behind. Fast forward to Week 12 and I was already at advanced stages of interviews for 2 Cybersecurity positions. 

For those looking to enter the field of Cybersecurity, and for those looking to become Security Analysts, I highly recommend CDAB. The course material is well-constructed, attainable, and relevant. Further, its instructors are Cybersecurity professionals with a wealth of knowledge and experience, who are invested in their trainees (even following course completion). 

  The CDA Bootcamp is an incredible course with the most relevant real-world materials I have seen to date.  The LE staff have a special blend of entertainment, education and true expertise that made it fun to learn in-depth cyber concepts remotely.  I initially had my doubts about a virtual course with this time line but I quickly found the pace and unique set up convenient and engaging. The course authors and company founders (Greg Ake and Rob Noeth) were the ones actually delivering the lectures and content. Having the creators as the teachers provided an amazing layer of depth and nuanced familiarity that is hard to come by in certification programs and formal education. 
 
 There is so much to like about the course but I feel their proprietary platform for lab and content delivery is particularly worth mentioning. Their entire lab environment contained on their infrastructure, and accessible through a web browser. This means I did not have to download VMs and could access my notes and exercises even from different computers. The virtual ecosystem they have created, combined with the depth of content, and style of delivery makes this the best course I have taken. 
 
 The materials covered in this course will put the student at a distinct advantage in technical interviews and substantially lower the barrier to entry across the cyber realm. Those who already work in this field will benefit from additional depth of understanding for processes, tool techniques, and advanced tactics for cyber defense. 

This is the 3rd security boot camp I've taken and by far the best experience I've had. The other students in the class were all great to work with and helped me learn when I got stuck. Rob and Greg were amazing instructors. The pre recorded videos flowed perfectly into the lectures and labs for the week. I chose to take this boot camp because it has a heavy emphasis on windows and defense techniques which I could directly apply to my day to day work. I would HIGHLY recommend taking this boot camp if you are new in cyber security industry or are looking to get started.

The pricing for this course does not do the course justice. What you are getting is a "zero to hero" on how to become a cyber analyst. Yes this doesn't cover every topic but it gives you a more than solid baseline to begin your cyber career. Cyber is a career in which you can join and expand as these careers grow. There are over 500,000 cyber opening available now throughout the US. This course will allow you to get into one of those positions and excel. The material is all encompassing you start with a baseline and before you know it your running tools and finding information you never know existed. The capstone is something you must prepare for, please ensure you are familiar with the material before that date comes is not an easy test. But in finishing you will feel accomplished and satisfied with your last 3 months worth of work. 
The instructors Greg and Rob are very knowledgeable they work with you when you struggle and will guide you to the end of the course. Great job gentlemen thank you!
The foundry platform which they created is hands down the best learning experience I've ever had with online learning. It is intuitive, simple to use, and runs the sections of the course flawlessly. 
Highly recommend this program for anyone trying to get into the cyber business!

This class was fantastic. It touched on every aspect of cyber security from detection to reporting. You learn how to hunt and to analyze as well as a plethora of online and free tools to aide in your efforts. The course was completely embedded in their proprietary learning platform so the level of ease spinning up VMs and having connectivity between machines was something I've never seen before. Instruction was thorough and really delivered all the tools needed for success whether you're getting started in Cyber Security or looking to expand your skill set.

I would highly recommend this course to anyone looking to change their career or expand upon their existing knowledge base. Greg and Rob deliver a rewarding experience and extremely applicable product that assists with students' understanding and comprehension of a challenging and lucrative field. 
Having taken several bootcamps myself, I can say with utmost certainty that the ease of use of their platform makes the "learning part" much less of a burden. Some of the biggest hurdles with most bootcamps or online courses are the technical difficulties aspects, the issues of not being in a traditional classroom, and taking the time to put in the effort when working from home. 
With Level Effect, this was not an issue. The LMS that they've created allows students to navigate the material very quickly. The instructors make themselves available to troubleshoot any problems you have. They take the time to explain difficult concepts in detail. Most importantly, they genuinely want you to succeed. 
Trust me. If you're considering your cybersecurity bootcamp options, you should put Level Effect at the top of your list. You will not regret the rewarding experiences, camaraderie, and, most importantly, the skillsets you will obtain throughout your adventure! Thank you again, Greg and Rob!

Network Fundamentals, Network Hardening, Defense in Depth, OSINT, Malware Identification,  Identifiers of Network Compromise, and Cyber Security concepts. This is what encompassed the course and allowed for some excellent training. This is not a certification bootcamp but more of a job training course which allows you to test for the CDA certification. So the concepts taught are all based on real world incidents and it shows you how to handle them as a member of a security team. Even with no It background this course will give you a solid understanding of what you need to do to be a Cyber Security Analyst / Consultant. Now you would still need to continue your studying and implementation of IT concepts but this is a great start to a job and career in cyber security. Course is broken down into learning modules that utilize video learning, individual hands on exercises ( through VMs of windows and linux ) and also group exercises which have you work as a team to solve issues.