GCIA
GIAC Certified Intrusion Analyst
Packet and log analysis, detection engineering fundamentals.
› 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.
› Market signals
public, citable inputs to the recognition score› Built for these roles
› Exam format
Open-book MCQ exam, 106 questions over 4 hours plus a Cyber Live hands-on component, online proctored.
30-day wait. SANS course bundles typically include 2 attempts.
› Recertification
36 CPE credits over four years (avg 9/yr) plus the $499 renewal fee per cycle.
› NICE Framework work roles
The NIST NICE work-role IDs this cert maps to. NICCS lookup.
› Core domains covered
The 3 domains this cert is centrally about. Passing the exam demonstrates working knowledge of each.
SIGMA/YARA/Suricata rule writing, hypothesis-driven hunting, log deep-dives, detection gap analysis.
Firewalls, IDS/IPS, network segmentation, DNS security, SD-WAN, VPN, traffic analysis, wireless security.
SOC operations, SIEM tuning, SOAR playbooks, alert triage, log analysis, runbook development.
› Prerequisites
Two-plus years of network or SOC experience. Often paired with SANS SEC503.
- Packet analysis (Wireshark, tcpdump)
- IDS signatures (Snort, Suricata)
- Detection rule writing
› 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.
› Study materials
Curated starting points. Not exhaustive — vet each against your learning style and the current exam version.
- SANS SEC503 Course Materials — SANS
- GIAC Practice Tests (2 included with exam)
› Version & lifecycle
› Salary signal
Network intrusion analyst / SOC tier 2-3, US, 3-5 years.
Robert Half Salary Guide · 2024 · US base only · p25–p75 range
› How it compares
GCIA is network detection in-depth; GCIH is incident response. Often paired in SOC teams.
↔ Compare side-by-side› Careers that commonly pursue this cert
Monitor, detect, and respond to security threats in a Security Operations Center. The front line of cyber defense.
Build detection rules, tune SIEM systems, and hunt for threats that evade automated defenses.
See this cert’s domains highlighted on the interactive map, or compare it against the rest of the catalog.