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14 executives named to Executive Advisory Council

Downers Grove, Ill. – Executives from companies and organizations at the forefront of the cybersecurity and managed services technology markets have been named to the inaugural Executive Advisory Council (EAC) of the CompTIA Information Sharing and Analysis Organization (ISAO).

The announcement was made today by CompTIA, the nonprofit association for the information technology (IT) industry and workforce.

EAC members serve as the guiding governance body for the CompTIA ISAO, helping the organization fulfill its mission of advancing cybersecurity resiliency throughout the global tech industry.

“The CompTIA ISAO brings together the best minds in the cybersecurity, IT channel and MSP communities to gather, analyze, disseminate information, and counter cyber threats,” said MJ Shoer, senior vice president and executive director of the organization. “Our advisory council members have a  common goal of seeing that robust security practices are implemented throughout the IT industry.”

Members of the CompTIA ISAO Executive Advisory Council include Arnie Bellini, managing partner, Bellini Capital; Vince Crisler, founder and CEO, Dark Cubed; Christopher Jones, director of cyber security, Dell Technologies; Ben Nowacky, senior vice president of products, Axcient; Jay Ryerse, CISSP, vice president, cybersecurity initiatives, ConnectWise; Wayne Selk, director, professional services, ConnectWise; and Marty Ward, vice president, product marketing, Sophos.

Also, Scott Algeier, executive director, IT-ISAC; Paul Kurtz, co-founder and chairman, TruSTAR; Chris Loehr, executive vice president, Solis Security; Eric Weast, owner, ECW Network & IT Solutions, Esteban Blanco, chief geek officer, Blanco I.T., Sagar Samtani, assistant professor and Grant Thornton Scholar, Indiana University Kelley School of Business; and Tracy Holtz, director, security Solutions, Tech Data and co-chair, CompTIA Cybersecurity Advisory Council.

Established in August 2020, the CompTIA ISAO evolved from the TSP-ISAO created by Bellini, a technology entrepreneur, investor and philanthropist, in conjunction with ConnectWise. In less than six months the CompTIA ISAO has provided its nearly 1,000 corporate members with more than 200 cybersecurity alerts on breaking threats and reports from analysts, members and other industry sources. Examples include:

A September 14, 2020, alert on the Microsoft Windows Netlogon vulnerability. CompTIA ISAO members had nearly 48 hours advance notice of this issue and recommendations for immediate mitigation, well before much of the industry.

A November 11, 2020, report titled “MSPs Targeted by Ransomware Operators.” The report was specifically written to help members understand current ransomware trends and included recommendations to protect themselves and their customers.

More than 40 posts in the CompTIA ISAO Cyber Forum on the SolarWinds event so members could better understand the impact of the event and respond accordingly to keep their customer and themselves safe.

Membership in the CompTIA ISAO is open to organizations in the IT channel and MSP communities, including cloud services providers, managed service providers, managed security service providers, technology vendors, and businesses providing services to the tech industry, such as financial, legal, sales, marketing, business consulting, and training firms. Visit www.comptiaisao.org/ for more information.

About CompTIA
The Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) is a leading voice and advocate for the $5 trillion global information technology ecosystem; and the estimated 75 million industry and tech professionals who design, implement, manage, and safeguard the technology that powers the world’s economy. Through education, training, certifications, advocacy, philanthropy, and market research, CompTIA is the hub for advancing the tech industry and its workforce. Visit www.comptia.org.

Media Contact
Steven Ostrowski
CompTIA
+1 630-678-8468
sostrowski@comptia.org