CertCities.com, a website catering to certified information technology professionals, has put forward its predictions for the hottest IT certifications in 2005.
The list is based on the results of a CertCities.com readers’ survey, which asked a diverse group of IT professionals what certification titles they hold and plan to achieve within the next 12 months. The difference between these two statistics was turned into a “reader interest score” for each title. This was added to a “buzz score” determined by industry experts, resulting in the rankings.
CertCities.com’s picks for the Hottest IT Certifications for 2005 are:
1) Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert (CCIE)
2) Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer: Security (MCSE: Security)
3) Red Hat Certified Engineer (RHCE)
4) Cisco Certified Network Professional (CCNP)
5) Cisco Certified Security Professional (CCSP)
6) Linux Professional Institute Level 2 (LPIC 2)
7) Novell Certified Linux Professional (CLP)
8) MySQL Core Certification
9) CompTIA Security+
10) PMI Project Management Professional (PMP)
Seminar on E-Mail Encryption
Zix Corporation, a provider of secure e-messaging, e-prescribing, and e-transaction applications and services, will present a web seminar on the importance of using e-mail encryption to protect nonpublic personal information. The seminar, “E-mail Encryption Responsibilities for Financial Institutions,” will take place on Thursday, April 7, 3 p.m.-4 p.m. EDT.
The featured guest speaker, Paul Reymann, is a leading financial institution regulatory expert and coauthor of Section 501 of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA) Data Protection Regulation. Reymann has more than 18 years experience in the financial services industry, including 13 years with the US Department of Treasury’s Office of Thrift Supervision in Washington, D.C. Visit www.zixcorp.com/series to register.
Windows Security Log Encyclopedia Online
Information Technology professionals now have a resource to fully leverage Window’s notoriously cryptic security log. The Windows Security Log Encyclopedia is a new tool for monitoring, intrusion detection and for carrying out computer forensics. The new tool covers all nine audit categories of Windows Server 2003 and illuminates the subtle, yet critical, differences between Windows Server 2003, 2000, and XP regarding security events. It documents each security event in the Windows OS, complete with valuable analysis and commentary.
This tool is freely available online at www.ultimatewindowssecurity.com/FreeSecurityResources.html.
‘Year of the Information Security Professional’
The International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium (ISC)2, the non-profit organization in its 15th year of educating, qualifying and certifying information security professionals worldwide, has declared 2005 to be the “Year of the Information Security Professional.”
Supported by major organizations such as the Information Systems Security Association (ISSA), Information Technology Association of America (ITAA), the Information Assurance Advisory Council (IAAC), ASIS International, Microsoft, Deloitte and Computer Associates, (ISC)2 will offer joint events, mentoring programs, scholarships and other initiatives to be announced throughout the year. The objectives of the year-long program are to:
• Highlight the worldwide demand for information security professionals and attract high-quality candidates to the profession;
• Continue encouraging organizations to meet the challenges of information security and ensure the security and privacy of customers and partners through the increased professionalism of its security staff; and
• Highlight the increasingly significant role information security professionals play in the global information society to the public at large.
“The role of information security professionals has become critical for protecting consumers, businesses, government agencies and organizations worldwide in their daily online tasks and interactions,” said James E. Duffy, CISSP, president and CEO of (ISC)2. “In every field, information security professionals are being called upon to secure the virtual world that we have all come to depend upon.”
Duffy remarked that the initiative was motivated by the conclusions of the first comprehensive study of the global information security work force, which showed the demand for these professionals would more than double by 2008 to 2.1 million worldwide. Conducted by IT industry analyst firm IDC for (ISC)2, the study said that the growth of the profession was being driven by competing demands on industry and government to expand access to services and information, new stringent regulatory requirements and the need for proactive solutions to circumvent emerging threats.
Other supporting organizations include Royal Holloway University, the leading academic institution in information security in the United Kingdom; Ernst & Young; the Professional Information Security Association in Hong Kong; Singapore Management University; Special Interest Group in Security and Information Integrity, the leading IT security society based in South Asia; and the Information Security Interest Group in Australia. For a complete list of supporters, to read the declaration or to learn how an organization can get involved in supporting the Year of the Information Security Professional initiative, please visit www.isc2.org.