Exam format
Certificate of Cloud Security Knowledge v5 Exam Format
Everything the official exam blueprint specifies: question count, time limit, scoring and the weight each domain carries. The Certificate of Cloud Security Knowledge (CCSK) v5 is a foundational certification provided by the Cloud Security Alliance (CSA). It validates an individual's knowledge of cloud computing security principles and best practices. Version 5 reflects the modern, evolving landscape of cloud technologies, focusing on distributed architectures, advanced identity management, and the complexities of multi-cloud and hybrid environments. The exam ensures that professionals understand how to secure data, applications, and infrastructure while navigating the shared responsibility model. It is designed to bridge the gap between general IT security and the specialized requirements of cloud-native ecosystems, ensuring practitioners can effectively mitigate risks in highly dynamic environments.
- 60 questions
- 120 min
- 80% to pass
- 12 domains
certilumExam facts at a glance
The published specifications for this certification.
| Specification | Value |
|---|---|
| Questions | 60 |
| Time limit | 120 minutes (120s per question) |
| Passing score | 80% — Minimum passing score 80% (official CCSK exam page) |
| Domains | 12 |
| Level | Associate |
| Question bank here | 60 questions |
| Published format | 60 multiple-choice questions; 120 minutes; open-book, online, self-paced |
| Source | Official exam specification, published by the vendor |
Official domain weights
The percentage of the exam each domain carries. Weight your revision by these numbers, not by what you find hardest.
| Domain | Weight | Topics | Practice Qs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Data Security | 12% |
| 7 |
| Cloud Governance | 8% |
| 5 |
| Security Monitoring | 8% |
| 5 |
| Application Security | 8% |
| 5 |
| Cloud Workload Security | 8% |
| 5 |
| Organization Management | 8% |
| 5 |
| Risk, Audit, & Compliance | 8% |
| 5 |
| Infrastructure & Networking | 8% |
| 5 |
| Identity & Access Management | 8% |
| 5 |
| Incident Response & Resilience | 8% |
| 5 |
| Related Technologies & Strategies | 8% |
| 4 |
| Cloud Computing Concepts & Architectures | 8% |
| 4 |
The heaviest domain is Data Security at 12%, and that is where lost points cost you the most. Certilum scores you per domain so you can see the difference between a knowledge gap and a formatting problem.
Note from the vendor record: Credential: Certificate of Cloud Security Knowledge v5 (12 domains), Cloud Security Alliance. CAVEAT: the official page's body text states 60 MCQ / 120 minutes / 80% minimum passing score, while the same page's stale meta description still says 90 minutes - flagged as an internal inconsistency on the official site. Source page is the current official URL (cloudsecurityalliance.org/education/ccsk, reached by 301-redirect from /certificate-of-cloud-security-knowledge). Per the official exam FAQ (exams.cloudsecurityalliance.org/en/faq): the certificate does not expire; only the purchased exam tokens expire after 2 years. No prerequisites are listed. Official exam page
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Everything you need to know about the Certificate of Cloud Security Knowledge v5 exam.