The fund will be spent on training, mentoring and certification with the aim to increase pool of talent with critical cybersecurity proficiency.
To bridge the cybersecurity skills gap, which most of the organisations, bet it government or corporates face, the US-technology giant Cisco has introduced a $10 million global cybersecurity scholarship program.
According to Cisco, It will invest $10 million in two-year to increase the pool of available talent with critical cybersecurity proficiency.
The fund will be spent on offering training, mentoring and certification that align with the security operations center analyst industry job role.
The training which is designed to address the critical skills deficit, providing on-the-job readiness needed to meet current and future challenges of network security, would be offered in partnership with select Cisco authorised learning partners.
“Many CEOs across the globe tell us their ability to innovate is hampered by their security concerns in the digital world. This creates a big future demand for skill sets that don’t exist at scale today. We developed this scholarship program to help jump-start the development of new talent,” Jeanne Beliveau-Dunn, vice president and general manager, Cisco Services, said in a statement.
In addition, networking giant has introduced Cyber Ops Certification programme and revised its CCIE Security Certification.
CCNA Cyber Ops focuses on the role of the security analyst working in a Security Operations Center (SOC) which monitors systems and detects attacks. It introduces IT personnel to some of the skills needed in a SOC, giving them an understanding of how responses are coordinated.
The CCNA Cyber Ops expands Cisco’s existing associate-level certification offerings, which includes the CCNA Security designation, which focuses on the network security administrator role.
According to Cisco, the CCIE Security revision addresses new expert-level skills and education needed to prepare security personnel for evolving technologies and security threats. This revision includes assessments on the latest security technologies, including advanced threat protection, advanced malware protection, next-generation IPS, virtualization, automation and information exchange.
The revision also includes a new assessment approach focused on ensuring that candidates demonstrate knowledge and skills with evolving technologies, such as network programmability, Cloud and IoT.