They should be prepared to continue business as usual even during disaster recovery, which means maintaining backups for business continuity. IT Security Specialists must stay up-to-date on the latest security systems trends, hack methods, and systems updates to keep their system running smoothly and safely. This will be especially helpful down the line as you advance in your cybersecurity career. You can also use virtual training labs to practice cybersecurity skills, such as penetration testing and ethical hacking.

With how to become a security specialist alone, individuals can often earn entry-level certification. As you develop more skills, consider adding certifications to pursue advanced positions and a higher salary. WGU is an accredited online university offering onlinebachelor’sandmaster’sdegree programs. Knowledge of advanced persistent threat management, which includes phishing, social engineering, and network access control. Penetration testing and measuring the vulnerability rating of cyber programs and software to understand risk. Attention to detail.A security consultant must take pride in exploring every detail of a company’s security architecture. Even the smallest vulnerabilities could lead to a devastating security breach.

What is a Cybersecurity Specialist?

For data, this field protects information by building structures for backups and encryption. Learn more about the responsibilities, duties, and daily tasks of security specialists and how they make a difference in their companies. NICCS offers comprehensive information on cybersecurity education and careers.

• Start your journey to becoming a security specialist by earning one of these certifications.
• The credential holder will be able to identify and mitigate potential cloud security threats, vulnerabilities, and risks.
• Software that can assist you in this task includes Kali Linux, nmap, Metasploit, Wireshark, and John the Ripper.
• In contrast, network security focuses on vulnerabilities in the connections between devices.
• A network engineer has a crucial job when it comes to protecting critical business and consumer data.

Cybersecurity specialists are also responsible for continual monitoring security systems and networks for anomalies and tracking those activities in documents and reports. Security+ is a CompTIA certification that is considered a basic cert among cybersecurity professionals. Cybersecurity workers and information security specialists both protect valuable information and data. However, cybersecurity prevents access by bad actors, and information security considers aspects like the availability and confidentiality of data.

How to Become a Security Consultant

All of these will help you to identify weaknesses in a system, ideally before a cyber criminal finds them. Believe it or not, the answer is not as straightforward as you might think.

Selecting specific titles gives you information about that role, as well as the framework categories. You may have heard so many times that the career you are entering is in extreme demand—the unfilled job openings number not in the thousands, but in the millions. There was a suggestion in 2020 that, by the end of 2021, there would be 3.5 million cybersecurity openings unfilled worldwide. As more and more companies realize the risk their network systems are experience every day, they begin looking for people like you to help them tighten their defenses. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a job growth rate of 32% between 2018 and 2028.

Frequently Asked Questions About Security Specialist Careers

Most people can get into an entry-level cyber security Engineer position within two to four years if they have the required experience. For someone who has already been working in IT and has enough experience, a certification is a sure-fire way to quickly transition into this field. By the end of 2021, there was approximately 3.5 million cybersecurity vacancies worldwide.