Network World and the authors have decided to remove this blog post and the discussion that followed. While the original post was intended to highlight how the issue of braindumps is a pervasive one, we regret having singled out anyone in particular and apologize for any accusations of cheating.
Robert Williams is co-founder and CEO of CertGuard. Robert founded CertGuard after an 8-year stint in the U.S Navy, three years of college and five years in IT. While on a quest for more knowledge, Robert decided to work on earning a certification when he noticed the abundance of braindumps and illegal services that plagued the industry. Putting his certifications and further education on hold, Robert decided that it was time for someone to dedicate their time to preventing the spread of these illegal products and services. And CertGuard was born.
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I can't support CertGuard
I am one of the people that CertGuard should have on their side. I support the idea of working against exam cheating, but I would only support ethical and moral methods of achieving it.
Their actions here have alienated the community on which they should depend for support and advice.
Its probable that Robert Williams (and by extension, Certguard) is immature, inexperienced and lacking in good judgement, given the responses that he has posted here.
How can I possibly support their work, when they act like children in a playground.
I call on Certguard to make a public apology to Ethan Banks, and to us, the Cisco community.
Then bugger off and find a real job. Very sad to say, they blew it.
http://etherealmind.com
Way to swallow your pride...
Robert - I commend the fight that you are promoting, but you were going about it in the wrong way.
Well done for apologizing and I hope you addressed Ethan directly.
Thanks,
Mark
Robert I support what you
Robert I support what you are trying to do in ensuring the value of everyones certifications. However I think that in this case you were wrong and you have made the right move in apologizing.
Thanks very much and good to see Ethan back online.
Agreed -- a misstep, but carry on
I don't know whether the CCIE in question was being disingenuous or not. But regardless the whole "singling out" thing was probably bad.
I think a better approach would be to continue to attack braindumps, braindump sites, the pervasive practice of using braindumps until some progress is made there. There will always be cheaters, but there would be far few users of braindumps if there was not a sense of legitimacy of these materials caused by their widespread use and availability.
When major Cisco partners (for instance, and from my experience) tolerate or condone the use of crap prep materials like braindumps, then it is probably a little much to single an individual out.
After individual cheaters go back underground (hiding from the light of day and workplace conversation), it makes sense to start targeting the cheaters at that time.
I'm disgusted with Cisco and its Gold, Silver, and so on Partners using on the one hand [Cisco], the Cisco certs as easy income and employee lock-in tools, and on the other hand, Partners spamming out certs as fast as they can to keep their Partner relationships and to get Cisco to recommend them to potential customers.
If you're going to go after cert cheating and braindumps, I'd say don't let the vendors and their marketplace apparatus off the hook.
That is not an apology
That is not an apology. It says they regret writing what they did.
They probably regret it because they have offended the entire community, and wasted years of work on their part. Their company is probably down the tubes and they didn't see it coming.
Certguard is not sorry that they accused, and implied guilt and, logically, are willing to do it again.
Who will they accuse next ? You ?
A full, public and unconditional apology is mandatory. That means using the word "sorry" at least twice.
I repeat my call to remove CertGuard from NWW for unacceptable behaviour.
http://etherealmind.com
Agreed. If that's an
Agreed. If that's an apology, wow. Robert damages the guys reputation, and call him a cheater to the whole world, and that's all he can say?
Robert Williams needs to be removed from this site. He is an amateur at best, and a libelous fraud at worst.
Fraud? Oh yes, he never answered a direct question: "how is CertGuard able to compare the so-called illegal materials with the actual tests without also violating NDA at the same time"?
Either he doesn't do this comparison, and he's lying, or he is a hypocrite to violate NDA in the same manner he accuses others of.
Remove him now, NW. He will do this again.
Robert Williams is a joke
The apology of Robert Williams is pethatic to say the least. The guy just ruined some guys reputation and all he can come up with is a lame "oh well I am only human too and able to make mistakes". CertGuard should be removed from ever writing anything again on this site otherwise this sites name might also be at stake.
REMOVE
get rid of this bogus guy from writing here ever again, he has nothing of value to contribute to the cisco centric community
Nice, but..
Stopping the conversation is good because it got much too emotional, too disturbing, not that the issue still stands.
I have been following the conversations, as much as I have time, and most of the comments are emotional instead of talking of the real subject - knowledge!
My own take, private certificates have some value but don't give much to the common knowledge, they are just to to promote and to sell one solution and profit to one company. So - education, knowledge and one company solutions should not be mixed, no matter how good they seem to be today.
Stealing the answers? Give me a break - if someone thinks that canned answers are the only real, steal them as much as you want! If the companies are willing to accept that the current technology is all there ever was and will be - I feel sorry for them and hope they don't get hit too much when the next technology comes around.
Sorry - over 30 years in computer business I have seen certificates to come and go, I have 2 feet pile of those (measured!), and, in my opinion, some are good but some are not so..
Robert Williams is a wanabe
Mr. Robert simply wants to make a name for him self by selfclaiming to be the right hand of the certification vendors. Well Mr. Robert I hate to burst your bubble but no one asked you to be that person.
Infact its acctually quite the opposite. Mr. Robert has acctually very openly displayed his lack of sheer common sence in that he draws his conclusions based on assumptions. So the real question is: Is Mr. Robert stupid? It would be harsh to say that to a person who mistankanly became stupid for a while, but in the case of Mr.Robert, he is such a person who belives he is right, and knows everything about anything but in actual fact he is not. This makes him a stupid, arogant, ignorant mindless fool. Simple fools are better then him.
Why ignorant? Because he lacks common sence. Decertification anyone? (always cracks me up hehe, btw the poor fellow watches soo much CSI that he infacts belives in data forensics applied on these tests, well what he belives in waffle, I on the other hand know for the FACT that there is NO such thing, because in anycase it could be proven wrong by simply guessing it - so he intimidates people by the decertification bullcrap).
Why Arrogant? Because he thinks he is doing a nobel thing but the real fact is that he does not have the brains to pass the exams himself so he flames others on cheating. Plus if he picks on you, well good luck because he is a DC current, wont back down, he will chop his ears off and poke his own eyes so he cant listen or read your views.
Well Mr. Robert, the truth hurts, doesnt it? Why dont you be a good boy and quitly remove your self from the internet world. The world does not need a wanabe act like you.