SANS Cyber Guardian Aims to Develop Much-Needed Pipeline of Cyber Talent

BETHESDA, Md., Jan. 14, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A continuous stream of high profile data breaches confirms there is a definite need for cyber warriors. The SANS Institute is working to fill that need by helping government agencies and the military develop a pipeline of talent with SANS Cyber Guardian 2015. SANS Cyber Guardian 2015 will take place March 2 – 7 in Baltimore, Maryland. The training is open to cyber security professionals in the public and private sectors looking to expand their knowledge as well as elite cyber security professionals participating in SANS' Cyber Guardian Program.

"Cyber attackers are winning; exposing huge vulnerabilities within nearly every major industry," said Ed Skoudis, SANS Faculty Fellow, "In a modern engagement with the types of adversaries we're facing, expertise across the entire spectrum of cyber issues is needed. Yet there are only a handful of folks that have that knowledge and can be called on if a major cyber attack were to occur. SANS' Cyber Guardian program was developed to address the acute shortage of talent needed to turn the table on attackers."

SANS' Cyber Guardian program is designed for elite teams of technical security professionals who are part of the armed forces, Department of Defense, or other government agencies whose role includes securing systems, reconnaissance, counterterrorism and counter hacks. It is an intensive, real-world exercise defending and attacking systems that was created to demonstrate how each cyber guardian's skills and expertise will be utilized in an actual attack. Participants must successfully complete four core courses and the corresponding certifications as well as pass the GIAC Security Expert (GSE) exam within two years of starting the program.

SANS Cyber Guardian 2015 is part of a larger event, SANS Capital Region 2015. This event is made up of SANS Cyber Guardian 2015 in Baltimore on March 2-7 and SANS Northern Virginia 2015 in Reston on March 9-14. These two live information security training events – with courses for everyone – provide the opportunity to take two courses over two weeks in two locations near DC. For more information, or to register, please visit: http://www.sans.org/u/oN

About SANS Institute
The SANS Institute was established in 1989 as a cooperative research and education organization. SANS is the most trusted and, by far, the largest provider of training and certification to professionals at governments and commercial institutions world-wide. Renowned SANS instructors teach over 50 different courses at more than 200 live cyber security training events as well as online. GIAC, an affiliate of the SANS Institute, validates employee qualifications via 27 hands-on, technical certifications in information security. The SANS Technology Institute, a regionally accredited independent subsidiary, offers master's degrees in cyber security. SANS offers a myriad of free resources to the InfoSec community including consensus projects, research reports, and newsletters; it also operates the Internet's early warning system--the Internet Storm Center. At the heart of SANS are the many security practitioners, representing varied global organizations from corporations to universities, working together to help the entire information security community. (www.SANS.org)

SOURCE SANS Institute

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