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IEC 62443 Cybersecurity Fundamentals Exam Prep
Preparation for ISA's ISA/IEC 62443 Cybersecurity Fundamentals Specialist exam, mapped to the topics ISA lists for its IC32 course: the 62443 series and roles, zones and conduits, FR1 to FR7, security levels, risk assessment, secure products. Free to learn; not the ISA certificate.
Inside the course
From the lessons
The Fundamentals Specialist certificate and why control systems need security
ICSBit Labs
Roles, key definitions and the reference model
ICSBit Labs
Zones, conduits and defence in depth
ICSBit Labs
Security levels: SL 0 to 4, target, capability and achieved
ICSBit Labs
Risk assessment for system design (62443-3-2)
ICSBit Labs
G6211: Patch management, service providers and remote access (62443-2-3 and 2-4)
SANS ICS Security
Lesson frames belong to the creators named in the Credits below and are shown from YouTube.
What you will learn
Explain why control systems need security and how their priorities differ from office IT; describe the four groups of the ISA/IEC 62443 series, its main parts and the roles of asset owner, product supplier and service provider; place a system on the reference model and its lifecycle; partition it into zones and conduits; apply the seven foundational requirements and security level vectors (SL-T, SL-C, SL-A); outline an asset owner programme and its maturity levels; follow the 3-2 risk assessment workflow; recognise industrial protocols and their weaknesses; plan patching and vendor remote access; describe secure product development (4-1) and component requirements (4-2); and sit ISA's fundamentals exam with a study plan.
- Map your study to the fifteen topics ISA lists for its IC32 fundamentals course
- Place every 62443 part in its group and match it to the asset owner, service provider or product supplier
- Partition a plant into zones and conduits using the reference model and defence in depth
- Apply FR1 to FR7 and compare SL-T, SL-C and SL-A vectors to find gaps
- Run the 62443-3-2 risk assessment workflow on a 5 by 5 matrix
- Plan patching, vendor remote access and secure product purchases with 2-3, 2-4, 4-1 and 4-2
For you
Taking IEC 62443 Cybersecurity Fundamentals Exam Prep from the United States
- Free in the United States, as everywhere, and self-paced: lessons, notes and the final assessment are open at any hour, so your time zone and shift pattern do not matter.
- The optional certificate for learners in the United States is a one-off US$28.99. What you get for it
- Plants across the Americas most often run Allen-Bradley, Siemens and Inductive Automation; each has its own free course to take next.
- See automation and engineering jobs in the United States, and what the industry looks like in Houston, Detroit and Chicago.
- EDWartens also has a regional site for the United States, for classroom training and local support: edwartens.com/us.
The course project 路 about 10 hours
Applying the 62443 fundamentals to a water treatment plant: inventory, zones and conduits, risk register and remote access procedure
Act as the asset owner's OT security engineer for a small water treatment plant. Build the asset inventory, partition the plant into zones and conduits with target security levels, assess risk with the 3-2 workflow, compare a proposed controller's capability with the target, and write the patch and vendor remote access procedure. The sample pack shows each document for a fictional plant.
Sample document pack, 5 documents, filled in for the scenario
- Asset inventoryOT asset inventory: Riverside treatment works
- Zones & conduitsZone and conduit register: Riverside treatment works
- Risk registerDetailed risk register (3-2 workflow): Riverside treatment works
- ReportCapability gap: proposed dosing PLC against zone Z3
- ProcedurePatch management and vendor remote access procedure
Read inside the course and download as a workbook. The project is optional practice, marked when you submit it; the certificate needs only the modules and the final assessment.
Course content
15 modules 路 41 lessons 路 13h 51m
In order, at whatever pace suits you. Each module ends with a practice task that builds on the last.
- 01The Fundamentals Specialist certificate and why control systems need security5 lessons34m
- 02The ISA/IEC 62443 series: four groups, the main parts and how they link3 lessons1h 6m
- 03Roles, key definitions and the reference model5 lessons1h 2m
- 04The IACS lifecycle and the security lifecycles2 lessons56m
- 05Zones, conduits and defence in depth4 lessons37m
- 06The seven foundational requirements2 lessons24m
- 07Security levels: SL 0 to 4, target, capability and achieved3 lessons1h 23m
- 08The asset owner security programme (62443-2-1) and maturity levels3 lessons1h 24m
Requirements
- Who it is for
- Intermediate. For control, automation and instrumentation engineers, IT staff working in plants, integrators and product engineers. Basic networking and some exposure to a PLC, DCS or SCADA system help; no security background is needed.
- Software
- None required. A browser for the free ISA Global Cybersecurity Alliance, CISA and NIST SP 800-82 resources, and a spreadsheet for the risk register exercises. The standards themselves are sold by ISA and IEC and are not needed. What to download, and how
- Hardware
- None.
Software you need
What to download, where from, what it costs and how to install it. Every link goes to the maker's own site, never a mirror.
Nothing to install
A spreadsheet helps with the risk register and inventory exercises; the standards are not needed, and the free ISAGCA, CISA and NIST SP 800-82 resources open in a browser.
Optional
Useful, not needed to finish the course.
- 01Free
LibreOffice
The Document Foundation
- Runs on
- Windows 10 or 11, macOS 11 or newer (Intel or Apple silicon), Linux
- Account
- None needed
- Size
- up to 1.5 GB of disk space on Windows
LibreOffice is free, open-source software under the Mozilla Public License 2.0, for any use including business. Calc is its spreadsheet.
Steps
- 1.Open the LibreOffice download page.
- 2.Check the page has picked your operating system, then select Download.
- 3.Run the installer (administrator rights are needed on Windows).
- 4.Start LibreOffice Calc for spreadsheet work.
- 5.Save as .xlsx if you need to share files with Excel users.
- Choose the latest main version unless your organisation asks for the older, more conservative release.
Official download pagelibreoffice.org
Checked against each maker's own page on 27 September 2026. Trial lengths and editions change; the maker's page is the final word.
IEC 62443 Cybersecurity Fundamentals Exam Prep at a glance
IEC 62443 Cybersecurity Fundamentals Exam Prep is a free, self-paced online course from EDWartens for control, automation and instrumentation engineers, plant IT staff, integrators and product engineers preparing for ISA's ISA/IEC 62443 Cybersecurity Fundamentals Specialist exam. It has 15 modules and 13h 51m of video lessons by ICSBit Labs, International Society of Automation - ISA, exida and others, with written notes and worked problems, a practical project with a document pack and a 15-question final assessment (pass mark 60%). Learning is free with an account; an optional certificate with a public verification code is issued when you pass. Last updated 27 September 2026.
All course factsHide course facts
- Price
- Free, for good. No trial, no card. The only paid item is the optional certificate, a small one-off fee.
- Who it is for
- Control, automation and instrumentation engineers, plant IT staff, integrators and product engineers preparing for ISA's ISA/IEC 62443 Cybersecurity Fundamentals Specialist exam
- Format
- 15 self-paced modules, 13h 51m of video, written notes, a practice task per module and one final assessment.
- Level
- Intermediate. Intermediate. For control, automation and instrumentation engineers, IT staff working in plants, integrators and product engineers. Basic networking and some exposure to a PLC, DCS or SCADA system help; no security background is needed.
- Brand
- Vendor-neutral
- Software
- None required. A browser for the free ISA Global Cybersecurity Alliance, CISA and NIST SP 800-82 resources, and a spreadsheet for the risk register exercises. The standards themselves are sold by ISA and IEC and are not needed.
- Hardware
- None.
- Certificate
- Optional EDWartens Certificate of Completion, verifiable by code. Not a vendor credential.
- Video lessons by
- ICSBit Labs, International Society of Automation - ISA, exida, Plainly Explained, SANS ICS Security, Waterfall Security Solutions, CEN and CENELEC, Bureau Veritas, Eaton, Simone's CyberSecurity, OPSWAT, SCADA & Beyond with Alana, Mike Holcomb (independent creators, credited below)
- Language
- English
- Last updated
- 27 September 2026
A shareable EDWartens certificate
Finish every module and pass the final assessment, and the optional EDWartens certificate is yours. It carries a unique verification code on a public page anyone can check, so it stands up when a recruiter looks it up. See it below.
The course itself stays free whether or not you ever buy one.
Stuck? Ask a practising engineer
A free course usually means a comment section and hope. This one does not. Every module has an Ask-your-trainer panel that reaches the same engineers who teach our paid programme: people who commission panels for a living, not moderators.
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Common questions
Is this the ISA/IEC 62443 Cybersecurity Fundamentals Specialist certificate?
No. This is free, independent preparation for ISA's Cybersecurity Fundamentals Specialist exam. ISA awards that certificate only after its own IC32 course and exam, which you register for and pay for with ISA; the IC32 registration includes the exam fee. EDWartens is not affiliated with ISA or IEC and is not an ISA training partner, and the EDWartens certificate is a verifiable certificate of completion for this course.
What is the ISA/IEC 62443 Cybersecurity Fundamentals Specialist?
It is Certificate 1 of ISA's ISA/IEC 62443 Cybersecurity Certificate Program, earned by completing ISA's IC32 course and passing its exam. ISA requires it before the Risk Assessment (IC33), Design (IC34) and Maintenance (IC37) Specialist certificates, awards the Cybersecurity Expert certificate automatically when all four are held, and states that the certificates do not need renewing (isa.org, checked 11 October 2026).
What does the fundamentals exam cover, and how does this course map to it?
The fundamentals exam follows the fifteen topics ISA lists for IC32: control systems security and awareness, the 62443 series, models and security levels, the IACS lifecycle, asset owner and service provider programmes, network basics and industrial protocols, patch management, risk assessment for design, secure products, security profiles and the protection scheme. Each of this course's fourteen study modules maps to one or more of those topics. ISA does not publish the question count or pass mark on the IC32 page, so check ISA's current information when you book.
Who is this IEC 62443 exam prep course for?
It is for control, automation and instrumentation engineers, IT staff working in plants, system integrators and product engineers who want a first ISA/IEC 62443 credential. Engineers in regions where 62443 increasingly appears in oil and gas, power and water specifications take it before booking ISA's course. Basic networking and some PLC, DCS or SCADA exposure help.
Is it free to learn, and do I need the standards?
Yes, every module, the notes, worked problems, practice questions, the project and the final assessment are free to learn. You do not need to buy the standards: the notes paraphrase them at concept level and point to free ISA Global Cybersecurity Alliance, CISA and NIST SP 800-82 resources.
How long does the IEC 62443 Cybersecurity Fundamentals Exam Prep course take?
Plan on about 21 hours: roughly 14 hours of video across fourteen study modules plus notes, worked problems and practice tasks, at your own pace. The optional water treatment plant project takes about 10 hours more.
What certificate do I get and how is it verified?
You get an EDWartens verifiable certificate of completion when you finish the modules and pass the 15-question final at 60 percent. It carries a unique certificate number, a QR code and a public verification page showing the course, the modules covered and your final score. It is not an ISA or IEC certificate.
How is this different from the OT and ICS Cybersecurity with ISA/IEC 62443 course?
This course is the fundamentals body of knowledge mapped to ISA's exam topics, with exam-style practice. OT and ICS Cybersecurity with ISA/IEC 62443 is the broader practical course on implementing OT security in a plant; take it next, or go on to OT Security Assessment for authorised assessment work.
What you walk away with
Your certificate for IEC 62443 Cybersecurity Fundamentals Exam Prep
Finish the course, pass the final, and this is the document with your name on it.
Verifiable by anyone
Adds to LinkedIn in one click
QR code on the certificate
Names what you can do
A permanent link
Earned, not attended
Learning is free. The certificate is optional.
Add it now and pay only when you have finished the course, or come back for it later. One-off, US$28.99, with a receipt.
Issued by EDWartens, the training division of Wartens, as a Certificate of Completion for this self-paced course. Sold by Wartens Ltd (England and Wales). It is not a vendor certification, a university award or a CPD-accredited activity, and it does not certify competence on live equipment. Delivered electronically; see the refund policy.
Credits
Who made the video lessons
The video lessons in this course were created by the people below, not by EDWartens. Every lesson streams from its creator's own YouTube channel; EDWartens neither hosts nor sells that footage, and the creators are not affiliated with EDWartens and do not endorse this course. What EDWartens wrote is the study plan, the notes, the practice tasks and the assessments.
- ICSBit Labsthe IEC 62443 Basics series (relevance, structure, roles, definitions, Purdue model, lifecycle, zones and conduits, the seven FRs, security levels, defence in depth, CSMS and maturity levels, protection scheme, risk assessment) and the webinar on 4-1 and 4-2
- International Society of Automation - ISAthe ISAGCA webinars on security lifecycles and on risk assessment with 62443-3-2, and the ISASecure overview
- exidathe webinars on lessons from 62443-2-1 assessments and on applying 62443-2-4 for service providers
- Plainly Explainedthe overview of the IEC 62443 standards
- SANS ICS Securitythe talk on whether and how to patch OT systems
- Waterfall Security Solutionsthe podcast episode on risk-based security levels and 62443-3-3
- CEN and CENELECthe webinar on EN IEC 62443 and the EU Cyber Resilience Act
- Bureau Veritasthe short introduction to IEC 62443
- Eatonthe explainer on industrial communication protocols
- Simone's CyberSecuritythe lesson on IT and OT networks, the Purdue model and the OSI layers
- OPSWATthe explainer on data diodes and one-way transfer
- SCADA & Beyond with Alanathe comparison of Modbus, DNP3 and IEC 60870 for SCADA
- Mike Holcombthe ISA/IEC 62443 Made Simple review lesson
If you are one of these creators and would like a lesson removed or credited differently, write to info@wartens.com.