PRESS RELEASE

SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 29, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Global leaders in vendor-neutral, standards-based cybersecurity credentials today announced the creation of the Cybersecurity Credentials Collaborative (C3), a new effort to promote the benefits of certifications in the skills development of information security professionals around the world.

Announcement of the C3 initiative was made here at the RSA' Conference 2012, the annual gathering of cybersecurity experts from around the world.

Inaugural members of C3 include ASIS International, Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA), International Council of Electronic Commerce Consultants (EC-Council), Global Information Assurance Certification (GIAC), International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP), IEEE Computer Society, ISACA, (ISC)2 and the National Board of Information Security Examiners (NBISE).

"We want IT professionals to be better prepared with proven solutions to validate their cybersecurity skills," said Rick Bauer, C3 chairman and director, product management, skills certification, CompTIA. "By bringing these credentialing groups together under the C3 banner we can provide a more coherent and disciplined picture of cybersecurity certifications and the value these credentials deliver to individual workers and the organizations that employ them."

In addition to stressing the value of certifications for IT professionals, the new group has an ambitious agenda that also includes research and advocacy, according to Marc Noble, C3 vice chairman.

"We look to sponsor independent research to validate empirically that people who take the time and effort to train and certify themselves make a significant difference in the security posture of an organization," said Noble, director of government affairs for (ISC)2. "We'll be telling our story to legislative and policy-making bodies around the world, and want to invite organizations with a similar shared interest to join us."

While voting membership in C3 is currently limited to IEC/ISO/ANSI 17024 accredited organizations, any group involved in the training and credentialing of the cyber-workforce (vendor-neutral or vendor-specific) has a place at the C3 table, according to Bauer.

"We see this as a broad, collaborative initiative open to any organization seeking to improve the preparation, training and credentialing of cybersecurity professionals in the private and public sectors worldwide," he said.

The C3 group completed its meetings earlier this week and plans to convene with the National Institutes of Standards and Technology (NIST) next month in Washington, D.C., as part of its ongoing engagement with policy development groups in the United States and around the world.

About the Cybersecurity Credentials Collaborative (C3)

The mission of C3 is to provide awareness of and advocacy for vendor-neutral credentials in information security, privacy and related IT disciplines. By its work, sponsored programs and activities C3 advances the craft and practice of certification program development and provides a forum to collaborate on matters of shared concern. For more information or to learn about membership in C3, visit http://www.cybersecuritycc.org/.