GCDA
GIAC Certified Detection Analyst
GIAC Certified Detection Analyst
› Quality score
Four-axis SecProve rubric, each 0–10. SecProve editorial assessment — each axis carries a written justification so you can push back on any single call without dismissing the whole score.
› Exam format
75 questions + CyberLive, 3 hours, open-book, proctored via Pearson VUE. Passing score: ~70%.
30-day wait between attempts. SANS course bundles typically include 2 attempts.
› Recertification
Valid for 4 years. Renewal via 36 CPE credits or renewal exam (479 USD). Each GIAC cert separate.
› NICE Framework work roles
The NIST NICE work-role IDs this cert maps to. NICCS lookup.
› Core domains covered
The 2 domains this cert is centrally about. Passing the exam demonstrates working knowledge of each.
› Prerequisites
No formal prerequisites. Associated SANS course strongly recommended.
› Progression
requiredrecommendedWhere this cert fits in the typical learning path. Required edges are vendor-gated; recommended edges reflect de facto industry progression.
No vendor-gated prereqs.
No certs require this one.
› Study materials
Curated starting points. Not exhaustive — vet each against your learning style and the current exam version.
- SANS SEC555 Course Materials — SANS
- SANS SEC555 SIEM with Tactical Analytics
- GIAC Practice Tests (2 included with exam)
- Splunk Boss of the SOC datasets (free)
› Version & lifecycle
› Salary signal
Senior detection analyst / SIEM engineer, US, 3-5 years.
Robert Half Salary Guide · 2024 · US base only · p25–p75 range
› How it compares
GCDA emphasizes SIEM tactical analytics; GMON is broader continuous monitoring.
↔ Compare side-by-side› Careers that commonly pursue this cert
Build detection rules, tune SIEM systems, and hunt for threats that evade automated defenses.
A hybrid role growing out of the realisation that SOCs need engineers who understand cloud-native telemetry, IAM-first threat models, and how to instrument AWS/Azure/GCP for detection.
› Common exam traps to study
Cybersecurity cert exams reuse the same 25 distractor patterns over and over — category confusion, RTO vs RPO, IDS vs IPS, MD5 vs SHA-256, and more. Once you can name the trap, you stop falling for it. Each archetype page covers what it is, the specific pairs candidates confuse, and how to avoid it.
See this cert’s domains highlighted on the interactive map, or compare it against the rest of the catalog.