CompTIA, the world’s leading tech association, announced the formation of a Cybersecurity Advisory Council. The council includes 16 industry experts that will guide how tech organizations can fight back the most significant cybersecurity challenges and threats introduced by attackers in 2021 and beyond.

CompTIA also states that the newly formed body will also be responsible for research, analyzing, and implementing new practices and protocols to help their customers remain safe.

Tracy Holtz, Tech Data Director of Security Solutions and Kevin McDonald, Alvaka Networks Chief Operating Officer and Chief Information Security officer, are co-chair for the Advisory Council. XeneX CEO Kevin Nikkhoo will be serving as a Vice-Chair.

“Recent events have underscored the dangerous cyber environment that all of us are operating in,” says Annette Taber, CompTIA Senior Vice President for Industry Outreach and Relations. “Combatting these threats requires a collaborative effort that brings together expertise from across the cybersecurity spectrum. We’re pleased to announce today that a number of leading cyber authorities have joined our Cybersecurity Advisory Council.”

Executives from Axcient, Vectra AI, SOCSoter, Check Point, Kroll, Sophos, Netskope, Huntress Labs, ADT Cybersecurity, The Privacy Professor, Eden Data, and SecurityCurve are amongst the other members of the council.

The council will start working after analyzing the most pressing cybersecurity events and trends and noting the future developments that would hamper the market most in the next three to five years, reported CompTIA.

They will also examine the factors that impact the acceptance of emerging cybersecurity practices and innovations and how to overcome barriers and obstacles with broader adoption.

“We recognize the real need to make industry-wide improvements if we are going to defend our companies, customers and industry reputations,” Co-chair Tracy Holtz says.

“The council will greatly expand outreach with the primary goal of changing collective behavior to reduce attacks and their associated negative impacts on the channel and their clients.”

Holtz’s counterpart, Co-chair Kevin McDonald, says the formation of the council was timely.

“There is no more critical time to bring together the new CompTIA Cyber Security Council,” McDonald says.

“The nearly constant changes, growing number and sophistication of threats and threat actors call for a far more coordinated approach to cybersecurity. Our community and customers deserve better, and we aim to help in making it better.”

The Cybersecurity Advisory Council also wishes to work with other CompTIA groups, including the IT Security Community and the CompTIA Information Sharing and Analysis Organisation (ISAO).

“With the growing cybersecurity threats, it is imperative to develop tools, policies, guidelines and roadmaps to help the IT industry, as well as customers, protect their organizations and critical assets,” Vice-Chair Kevin Nikkhoo says.

“This is a unique opportunity for CompTIA and cybersecurity industry leaders to bridge the gap across different industries and disciplines and address the much-needed cooperation and communication to achieve these goals.”