Check Point brings cybersecurity training to more with free edX courses

Check Point Software has partnered with edX in order to bring free online courses to the public, with a long term view of helping to close the cybersecurity skills gap.

edX is a Harvard and MIT-founded online learning platform used by 30 million learners as well as the top ranking universities and industry leading companies globally.

The partnership will offer a growing series of Check Point cybersecurity courses and content to security and network professionals.

This includes the Check Point Jump Start series, which features network and hyperscale network security courses. Further modules will soon be available on Check Point's CloudGuard cloud security and SMB security solutions, the company states.

All courses aim at upskilling students or IT professionals on cyber threats and security management, as well as those looking to start a new career in the sector.

All Check Point courses available on the edX platform are free of charge to remove the barrier of cost, location, and access to help reduce the skills gap, the company states.

Recent research shows that nearly two-thirds of organizations reported a shortage of cybersecurity staff last year, with 36% citing a lack of skilled or experienced security personnel as their number one workplace concern.

Check Point Software Technologies vice president of learning and training Liat Doron says, "Partnering with the renowned edX platform enables us to help close the ongoing cybersecurity skills gap.

"With the global shortage having passed four million, organisations need to accelerate efforts to try and help change this ongoing issue.

"Working with edX, combined with our other initiatives such as SecureAcademy, will help tackle these global skills shortages and attract the next generation of cybersecurity professionals.

edX VP of business development Lee Rubenstein says, "The cyber skills gap is huge, and growing daily, so we need to be ambitious about cybersecurity education because our privacy depends on it.

"Working with leading vendors like Check Point to offer free courses will help to upskill those people already working in the sector, and help to attract new talent to protect business and industry against damaging cyber attacks in the future.

According to Check Point, the partnership with edX further demonstrates the company's ongoing commitment to providing essential education and training within the sector, helping to attract more people into the industry and grant easy access to learning materials.

In March this year, Check Point announced the 100th academic institution has signed up to its SecureAcademy program, which offers a comprehensive cybersecurity curriculum to students, with courses available at more than 100 universities in 40 countries.

Check Point also offers CloudGuard Cyber-Range training. These courses deliver immersive cybersecurity training in simulated environments via the flexible Cyber Range cloud platform, offering an engaging, gamified learning environment. Training is fully adaptive to users' needs with built-in debriefing and progression tracking.