Getting several AD emails lately with the newest one being the http//aceds.org test prep course in Vegas.
So their site looks better today than it did previously, and I click on join only to notice
2-year Membership, Government
$225
2-year Membership
$295
1-year Membership, Government
$150
1-year Membership
Limited time only - $195 (Regularly $255)
$195
My issue here is the same as it usually is, but it's amplified this time because out of all the discounts I feel this organization doesn't or shouldn't appeal to Government agencies.
I think we all agree in the realm of computer forensics there are several different areas. Usually when you hear E-discovery you think Civil and you think private accounting and law firms, not government agencies.
If you go over the advisory board, it's not riddled with Government agencies, it's mostly law firms and accounting firms, with one person from the IRS, but once again Government discount.
I just don't see it, thoughts, opinions, flames…
I was part of the inaugural (i.e. beta) class to go over the ACEDS material and take the ACEDS exam. Knowing the content I can see where there would be some value for government employees that are involved with electronic litigation. I can't tell you the number of cases I've worked on where the SEC has been involved in one way or another.
That said, I'm not sure what the test prep course is all about. The material I reviewed essentially covered e-discovery from start to finish - Legal Holds, cross-border laws, privacy laws, meet and confer best practices and then they touch upon typical ediscovery stuff like the workings of a computer, forensic protocols, esi processing, esi hosting and esi production.
I'm not endorsing or condemning the cert one way or another, but I can see government agencies benefiting from the material just as much as a private company would.
The Government (at least in the US), is as much and more subject to legal holds as private entities.