CompTIA Blog

Last week leadership of the Senate’s Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee released a copy of the revised “Cybersecurity Act of 2012,” which is the latest draft bill aimed at reforming cybersecurity laws and regulations.Yesterday, Senator Reid’s office stated that the bill would be up for a floor vote this week.  Senators Lieberman, Rockefeller, Collins and Snowe, among others, worked diligently behind the scenes to move the bill forward by securing bipartisan support for the bill ...

We’ve studied the cloud computing market for three years. Our inaugural study focused on gauging the marketplace and defining cloud concepts, and the second study explored early adoption trends among end-users and channel firms. With the 3rd Annual Trends in Cloud Computing study, CompTIA examines a maturing market and the changes that are taking place not only for IT but also for business in general.The cloud market is expected to continue its rapid growth path. Gartner projects that total clou ...

The big C when it comes to cloud for the channel is “conflict.” I have been presenting and visiting partners around Europe for the past several years and listening to the opinions and input from vendors, VARs, resellers, MSPs, ISPs and a variety of channels by varying name definitions, and one thing is for sure, the cloud has certainly stimulated debate.Whether it is concern, nervousness, confusion or mistrust, a lot of negative feelings have been generated in the channel by the C word. And yet ...

Techopedia recently interviewed Carol Balkcom, CompTIA Director of Product Management, about security certification. Balkcom discussed the topics covered in CompTIA's two security certifications, as well as differences between CompTIA certifications and others in the market. See what she said. ...

Within the corridors of one of Japan's top technical consulting firms, a new skills training program is producing whiplash-fast results for those involved. At the heart of this initiative is a core belief in the value of CompTIA A+ certification. In the past year, the client services division of MicroMates, which provides IT equipment support for Ricoh Technosystems, implemented the "skills map" program to boost staff knowledge through a four-pronged focus on practical skills, communication ...

Recently, CompTIA and the Congressional Caucus on Small Business IT held a briefing on the issue of lagging interest in IT-related careers by our nation’s youth. A group of concerned representatives from CompTIA, Congress and a panel of IT, education and small business experts set out to frame the issue and offer possible solutions. Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez (D-CA), the co- chair of the Congressional Caucus on Small Business IT, gave opening remarks, discussing the IT industry’ ...

While CompTIA’s Breakaway has nearly a 30-year history in the channel, it is truly breaking new ground, offering the industry a powerful channel event, unlike any other -- and the industry is responding in a big way!  With the event just a week away (July 29 – Aug. 1 at the ARIA Resort & Casino in Las Vegas),  CompTIA is looking forward to welcoming more than a thousand channel executives from solution provider, vendor, distributor, media and other channel organizations.   Breaking away from ...

Interest is growing in requiring all remote sellers to collect and remit sales taxes for products and services sold from State A to State B.  For a number of years, states have been concerned over the loss of revenue resulting from their inability to enforce payment of use taxes by residents who purchase products and services from an out of state vendor.  The solution around which most are rallying is to require out of state sellers to collect and remit the applicable tax, even if that business ...

When it comes to locking down your customers’ networks and critical data, the end goal is to prevent any intrusions or information loss. Obviously, with all the nefarious characters wreaking havoc on the Internet and sharing ideas on how to penetrate the various security measures that businesses (and individuals) employ, that’s objective is getting harder to accomplish. For every new threat prevention method, the bad guys seem to create multiple ways to get around them. It’s more than a game to ...

Takeaway of the week is it's hard to know who, or what, to trust. The future is bright for the IT job market. No, it's not. Oh yes, it is. Wait, maybe some of it is sunny and other parts are cloudy. No wonder the weather reporter always takes a beating from the public. Survey Says: Sunny Days for IT Job Seekers If you're equipped with IT training and in need of employment, consider yourself luckier than most job seekers, according to a new survey. More than half of the respondents to Career ...

A look at the week of July 16 in public advocacy for the IT channel: Republican governors have stopped their opposition to imposing state sales taxes on online purchases, which signifies the inevitable end of a no-tax Internet, says the Wall Street Journal. The Marketplace Fairness Act – which grants states the authority to tax “remote sellers” the same way they do local business – is long overdue, says the Washington Post. The Senate is going to consider a new cybersecurity bill next week, says ...

All CompTIA certification exams will now take place solely at Pearson VUE testing centers and no longer at Prometric testing centers. The goal of this change is to simplify the overall testing experience for all candidates who wish to take a CompTIA certification exam. If you have a Prometric exam voucher, it is now valid at Pearson VUE testing centers as long as it has not expired. You can schedule an appointment at Pearson VUE either in advance or on the day you choose to take the test, as l ...

The Senate has failed to reach the 60 votes needed to pass S. 2237, Small Business Jobs and Tax Relief Act.  The final vote was 53-44. This bill would have provided a few small business tax benefits including: A tax credit equal to 10% of the difference in the compensation paid to employees in 2012 over 2011; and The 100% bonus depreciation allowance for business would be extended.During floor consideration of the bill, an amendment offered by Republicans to substitute the House-passed H.R. 9 (s ...

Over the past decade, I’ve had the opportunity to attend a variety of IT channel events, from the largest industry conferences to smaller, regional get-togethers. Regardless of the show’s size or number of associated activities, there never seems to be enough time to do everything you’d like to do (let alone everything you need to do).As an editor, I scheduled almost every waking minute at tradeshows for interviews, demos and networking. In order to accomplish that level of activity, the process ...

Takeaway of the week is in the form of a catch phrase from the old game show, "Family Feud," that goes, simply, "Survey says..." Yes, it's one survey after another coming out as we hit the midpoint of 2012, and most all indicators are that it's a good time to be a skilled IT professional on the hunt for a job. Depending on your skills and location, the growing job market just may find you first. Salary Survey: Good News for IT While not all is rosy in the IT job market, compensation in one a ...