cert guard, inc. techniques in web technologies robert williams, ceotaylor ripley, cso...
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CertCertGuardGuard, Inc., Inc.
Techniques in Web Technologies
Robert Williams, CEO Taylor Ripley, CSO [email protected] [email protected]
Reducing the effects of braindumps
Certguard.com• Exam Security & Certification Integrity• Created in Feb 2006 to help:
– Exam Candidates• Avoid Braindumps• Reduce loss of certifications
– Certification Vendors• Information about braindump sites, owners, & affiliations• Where exam content can be found• Removal of unauthorized content from the internet
– Employers• Risks and dangers of braindumps
– Reduced productivity
– Decreased profits
– Loss of clientele
Certification Websites
• 20,000+ certification websites• 4 most prominent types of websites:
– Certification Vendors• CIW, Microsoft, Cisco, etc.
– Practice Test Providers• MeasureUp, SelfTestSoftware, CareerSaver, etc.
– Braindumps• TestKing, Pass4sure, ActualTests, etc.
– Bootcamps
• Stolen Info
GOAL: Prevent IP Theft; Increase the value of IT Certifications
Probability• ~3,500 Certification Websites
• ~1,200 Braindump Websites• ~400 Link Dumps• ~450 Filesharing / Torrent Websites• ~75 Proxy Testing Websites• ~400 Classroom / Bootcamps• ~200 Certification Vendor Websites• ~500 Safe Websites
• All sites:– Competing for attention of the same candidates– Using same or similar keywords– Presenting similar or identical information
• Odds of finding the right CIW materials:– 39% Legitimate– 61% Braindumps
Finding resources• Experienced professionals
– Most have a good idea of what to look for and where to find legitimate sources
• New exam candidates– Most aren’t even aware that braindumps exist, let
alone know that they are considered cheating
• Difficult for all candidates• Career changing results
– Right materials– Wrong materials
• CertGuard Search shows which is right and wrong for study
Search Engines• 3 Primary Search Engines
– Google, Yahoo, Live– Unbiased Information– Money & Advertising
• Keywords / Terms / PhrasesCIW, CIW Test, CIW Exam, CIW Certification, CIW Certificate,
CIW Braindump, CIW Associate, CIW Professional
• Lead to braindump sites• Dupe candidates into inadvertently cheating
GOAL: Increase the Visibility of legitimate sources of study.
CIW Exam
Search Engine Optimization
• Reaching new CIW Candidates first– Overpowering site rankings– Knowing the intended audience– Using that information to our advantage
• Keywords driving traffic– Researching Keywords– Some work, some don’t– Exam Numbers, Exam Names, Certification Names
• Circular / Back Links
COMPETE.COM
Google & live search engines
• Search Engines have adapted– Within past 12-18 months– Official Websites show first– Gives us more freedom to use domain names
without increasing their SEO/SEM
legalities
• Microsoft Corporation v. Certification Trendz– Microsoft locked in 70 sites– CertGuard now has over 400 sites locked in
• Violation of Copyright and NDA– DMCA Takedown– Breaks Non-Disclosure Agreements– No different than pirated/stolen material
• Consequences are Dire– Loss of Certification– Permanently Blacklisted– Legal Action
CertGuard Technologies
• Combating braindumps– Web crawler indexing certification websites
• Finding new sites that distribute dumps– Web crawler searching for specific keywords
• Connecting the people involved– Names, Addresses, Locales
Whois
• Excellent Resources• API• WHOIS• WHOIS History• Registrant History• Reverse IP Lookup
• Web 2.0• Wiki Style Editing• Owner Associations• Crawlers• Great for General and Beginning SEM
• SEO/SEM Scores
• Website Optimization
• Analytics & Tracking Info
• Related Sites
Content Management System
• Developed by CertGuard• Information we collect from websites
– 75% outside the <body> tags– 20% inside the <script> tags– 5% inside the <a> tags
• Only available to Certification Vendors• End-User benefits by Search Results
Th!nkmap
Code Samples
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Linking websites
• Providing accurate information– Verified by a CertGuard Employee
• Unseen connections– New connection methods found daily
• Methods we’re using / developing– Owner Associations– Site Affiliations– Content Analysis– Code Matching
Owner associations
• Transcender– Once considered a braindump– Acquired by Kaplan Learning in 2001
• SelfTestSoftware
• Many other educational businesses
– Now one of the top Practice Test Providers in the world
• Safe Assumption– Legitimate Study Materials from Legitimate Sources– If in doubt, use CertGuard Search
Owner associations
• TestKing– Infamous for distributing stolen exam questions
• All IT Certfications• ASE (Automotive Service Excellence)• Nursing (NCLEX)• College Entrance Exams
– Estimated $10 Million Annually– 150,000 dumps in 2007
• eTech Solutions (AKA Certification Trendz)– Sued by Microsoft– Owns thousands of other websites
• Owner Association alone can not help us here
webSite affiliations
• Monetized Sites– Pay-per-click accounts
• Google– AdSense, Analytics
• Amazon
• Other affiliations
Website affiliations
Content analysis
• Clues to ownership of site– WHOIS Information
• Copied content• Similar / Identical…
– Code– Payment systems– Writing Styles– Poor Grammar or Typos
• Further developing methods analyzing content
Certification vendors
• Vendor Backing by Leading Vendors
• Positive Feedback on our efforts
• Subscribing Member of ATP
• Not done until backed by all vendors
Ciw exam policies
CertGuard SearchSAFE
CertGuard SearchNOT SAFE
CertCertGuardGuard
We appreciate your time!
Thank You!
ROBERT WILLIAMS, CEO – 361.443.9014
TAYLOR S. RIPLEY, CSO – 251.625.4133
HTTP://WWW.CERTGUARD.COM/