CISSP.com, the web portal for the certified information systems security professionals

There's a lot to see and do on the new CISSP.COM and the security professionals network - so much that we thought we'd give you a quick tour of some of the highlights.

Community Is Everything

For the community, by the community, CISSP.COM and the security professionals network strives to be the central source for informed, reasonable, and intelligent Information Security and Technology information, software, documentation and answers across all domains  of the information and information and cyber security field.

The "By Community" phrase in this description is very genuine: we want the security professionals network members to feel as if they can contribute to the community from day one. This means more than just commenting on articles and other content (though we welcome that, too)--it means making connections with others, suggesting new content, helping us bring in or link to existing content, and joining the community as a security professional blogger.

To get started, click Login to use or Register to get your free account. You will land on your profile page in the security professionals network section. From the profile page, you can start your participation.

• Write an article or tutorial that gets published on CISSP.COM and the security professionals network

• Click My Blog to begin the process of creating your own blog

• Invite some friends to the security talents community

• Add an application to your Profile, like Twitter

• Create a group for your local security professionals and invite friends to stay informed with local events

Socializing with other information security professionals in the security talents community is very worthwhile, but it's not the only opportunity to participate in the community. You can contribute your own content to the community, too.

Here are the other ways you can contribute:

• Post a comment in our Forums

• Comment on a story in our News section

• Ask a question or give a solution in Answers

• Add a listing or a product review in our Directory

• Create your own article or tutorial

Add Content to CISSP.COM and the security talents community

There are two types of articles that can be added to the community: a community blog entry and a standard article. For more information on how to use the MyBlog system to create your own blog on the security talents community, visit the Community Blog Guide.

To submit an article to community, log into the community and click the Submit an Article link in the My Account menu on your profile home page.

On the Submit an Article page, you will find an easy-to-use WYSIWYG editor that will allow you to enter a complete article on the CISSP.COM and the Security Talents Community sites. After you have entered the Title and body of the article, click Save and the editorial staff will be notified of the article submission. After review and editing, we will post the article in the appropriate section of Linux.com.

Some hints to make submittals more efficient:

• Use the HTML Editor tool to enter HTML-formatted content. The simpler the HTML, the better.

• If you have images, link them from a source site, such as your own site or a third-part imaging site such as Flickr.

While we will try to publish all articles submitted, there will be some articles that simply won't be ready to publish. Here are some guidelines to help make your articles more publishable. For more information, visit our Editorial Policy page.

• Use English. Eventually we may make the security talents community a multi-lingual site, but for now, please keep articles and other content in English.

• Focus on a single idea. Instead of "how to manage security policies" perhaps write "how to use security policies to enhance access control systems"

• Use a recipe format. After a little preliminary info, use numbered steps. Make the first sentence of the step the action and the second sentence the result.

• Use graphics. Screenshots are good. Make sure no artwork is wider then 400 px wide.

• A long, preformated line of text will break out of the main content column. Try to keep them short.

• Try not to be redundant. Make sure the content is original and not reproducing a topic that is already posted on the security talents community. Duplicate topics that overlap too much will not be published, so check the site first before working on your content.

• Tone down the foul language. You can say what you need to say without relying on cursing. In fact, your writing will be regarded as that much more creative.

With the security talents community, we are providing a framework for discussion and user generated information to expand the knowledge base of security information. Please note that articles, as well as any other user content on the security talents community (such as blogs, directory content, forums, comments, etc.), do not reflect the views or endorsements of the security talents community, its staff, or its members. We recognize there may be inaccurate information reflected in this site and that users should understand that something that appears on the security talents community does not mean that we vetted or endorsed that content.

The Latest Info

The security talents community News section contains in-depth analysis and reports for software, hardware, embedded, business, and enterprise security topics. It also contains the Featured Blogs from the security community luminaries and information security leaders.

Learn All Security

• Answers: Something about security you can't quite figure out? Visit our Answers section to find answers to other user's questions or post your own!

• Documentation: Remember those user manuals that came in the box of software? Most security software doesn't come in a box anymore, but that doesn't mean the manuals aren't around. Here's our collection of security documentation.

• Tutorials: There are many tasks in security that every computer user needs to accomplish. In this section, find out how to do the simple and the sophisticated tasks in security.

• Whitepapers: The security talents community has a lot of knowledge under its belt, and is always researching security. Browse our library of publications to see what the community has learned.

• Resource Center:What is security? How is it used? How do I plan for it? The Resource Center provides detailed articles introducing information security guides and explaining its best practices.

• Careers/Training: Staying employed or getting employed. These can be real challenges. Get expert advice on how to stay current in your job with career advice and advanced training opportunities.

Get the 411

The security talents community directory is a user-contributed and -reviewed database of security applications, books and other professional services in the data security ecosystem.

The directory's listing are entered by users who share what they know about these items. What software is the best of its class? How do you get the drivers for that piece of hardware? These are all questions that the directory can answer. As time goes on, and the directory becomes more complete, it will be an invaluable resource for security professionals of all experience levels.

Become a security Guru

If you participate in the security talents community by providing content, you will gain guru points that will showcase your skills. Here is the current list of assigned point values:

• Publish an Article: 20 pts
• Ask a Question: 3 pts
• Answer a Question: 5 pts
• Add an Item to the Directory: 3 pts
• Review an Item in the Directory: 2 pts
• Add New Group: 3 pts
• Add New Group Discussion: 2 pts
• Leave Group: -3 pts
• Invite Friends: 5 pts
• Approve Friend Request: 1 pt
• Add New Photo Album: 1 pt
• Post Group Wall: 1 pt
• Join Group: 1 pt
• Reply Group's Discussion: 1 pt
• Post Wall: 1 pt
• Profile Update: 1 pt
• Update group: 1 pt

The top 50 security gurus on CISSP.COM and the security talents community will be included in an annual report from CISSP.COM and securitytalents.com. The top five contributors to the security talents community annually will receive invitations to the RSA conference. The top security talents community user will be recognized each year as the “Ultimate security Guru” and be given a fully loaded notebook, as recognition of his or her guru status. The top five security gurus and ultimate security guru will be determined by guru points total on November 1st every year.