Kickstarting Your Cybersecurity Career
Getting Ahead In Cybersecurity
As technology advances, so do the cyberattacks that happen. People are being more creative and smart when it comes to technology hacking and as such, cybersecurity has to step up as well. Not to mention, its importance is bigger than ever.
If you are interested in cybersecurity, the first and foremost thing you should do is to keep yourself well versed with the topic. Be up to date with what is going on. You can take a cyber security course to keep up with the latest developments.
What is cybersecurity though?
Well, it is the practice of protecting all electronic data, networks, computer systems, and other confidential information. All this information is highly sensitive and has to be protected and kept out of reach from cyberattackers. Usually, cyberattacks happen with the intention of sabotaging a business or extorting money from users, just to name a few.
As such, cybersecurity is so important in today’s world. Regardless of your position, your information is in the system. The world is becoming more and more connected due to today’s technology. Almost every person has at least one mobile phone or electronic device on them. All these devices are connected to the Internet. Not to mention, most of our lives are tracked electronically. These records include things such as our health information, financial information, the time we reach home, what food or clothes we purchase, our address, the list goes on. With the right data, the machines are able to build a profile from the information we provide and understand us better – even better than we know ourselves.
This is exactly why all information online needs to be protected and away from the hands of cyberattackers. The job of keeping your information safe is not only in the hands of cybersecurity workers but in the normal man’s hands as well. It is your responsibility to know exactly what information you have provided and to where. You also have to know the consequences of sharing such information and manage your own risks.
There has to be proper cybersecurity; if not, information can easily be stolen. Cyberattacks are able to destroy businesses. As such, there is a need to continuously hire cybersecurity professionals and train them to keep them up to date with the newest technology and solutions. The Internet is changing every day and so is the technology and software that runs it. The cybersecurity professionals have to be kept up to date to ensure that they are not behind the times in order to protect the data as much as possible.
This is not only important for businesses but on a bigger level, politics and social cohesion are also at risk. There are different nations who are trying to steal secret information about the other for example. With the proper machine, we can effectively trace out these bugs and stop them as soon as possible.
So what is it like working in cybersecurity?
There is not just one path when you are in this line of work, there are many different directions for you to choose and explore. So if you are passionate about keeping our cyber infrastructure safe, this is the industry for you. The demand for cybersecurity professionals is ever increasing, so do not feel like you will not be able to get a job in this line.
Being in this industry does not just mean that you have to have a wide knowledge in the field of technology. No. instead, you can have knowledge in the areas of law, psychology, sociology, organizational sciences for example. This is why this field is so open to many people be it technical or not. Cybersecurity needs people who can also be program managers, software developers, systems analysts, and many more. Not everything is technical. There is even marketing and sales for you to choose from!
The outlook in cybersecurity is quite promising. It is bound to be more favorable in the future due to the advancements in technology. As long as technology continues to grow and change, the need for cybersecurity professionals will continue to increase as well. This is because, if there is a lack of such professionals, it would be extremely bad for businesses. The need for cybersecurity is to ensure that both big and small businesses are well protected from any losses.
Jobs In Cybersecurity
If you are interested, there is a range of positions that you can apply for.
1. Network security engineer
This position is usually found in big companies and your job would be to help manage the security of the company’s network hardware and software. Be it from their firewalls to VPNs.
2. Security generalist
This guy does everything in smaller companies. You will be an extremely valuable part of the business, but you will also be doing almost everything.
3. Identity and access management engineer
This is a sub-group of cybersecurity. This job requires you to put your attention to digital identities and access rights within an organization. The goal is to make sure that there is the right level of system access for all employees to ensure that there will not be any unauthorized usage happening.
4. Cloud security engineer
This job requires you to protect cloud-based platforms.
5. Penetration tester
Imagine getting paid to hack. This job requires you to hack into the company’s software and systems to help them find loopholes and source out all security vulnerabilities.
6. Security auditor
This person’s duty is to report on a security system’s effectiveness and provide ways to improve and make it better. Unlike the penetration tester, this role is of a higher level as it uses more established standards to evaluate a system.
Conclusion
In conclusion, entering the cybersecurity industry is not a bad idea. In fact, if you have an interest in this field, you are highly encouraged to pursue it. The industry is one that is booming and there are many different positions for you to choose from. As a cybersecurity professional, you will be the hero that protects the people from all forms of losses when online, saving us the trouble of losing private information to cyber attackers out there.
