Until people know just as much about cybersecurity as they do about looking
both ways before they cross the street, then it's still going to be a problem.
Hi and welcome back to Roadtrip Nation's channel. I'm Jenny,
and today we're talking about an awesome career path for people who love working with computers
and solving problems: cybersecurity! We're going to explore a common career path into cybersecurity
and talk through helpful info like what kind of salary you can expect,
what kinds of educational paths you can take, and how you can get started in the field. This is part
of a broader series that explores all kinds of different industries connected to your interests,
so make sure to like and subscribe if you want to see more videos like this one. Let's get into it.
If you're into computers and love the idea of working in a fast-moving, constantly evolving
field, cyber security might be the field for you. Cyber security is all about protecting computers,
networks, programs, and data. The world is totally reliant on technology, and at
a time when all of our info is online, we need passionate people to protect that information.
So this is a field where you can basically be a superhero, warding off malware threats and
keeping data safe. Just FYI the title security analyst is kind of a catch-all we're going to use
for entry-level cyber security and information security jobs. Information security analyst is
actually the job title you'll most commonly see used on job postings across America right now,
but some other similar job titles include security analyst, cyber security analyst,
SOC analyst, IT security analyst, systems analyst, incident analyst, network security analyst,
whew, all kinds of analysts! The huge variation in job titles is because there are
so many different systems and technologies you can learn and protect from job to job.
Take it from Christina Morillo, she's the VP of technology and information risk at Morgan Stanley.
There are so many niche areas, right? You're going to hear about red team,
blue team. You're going to hear about, you know, incident response. You're going to hear
about identity and access management, maybe, IT security compliance, governance, risk.
I'm a subject matter expert in one piece of the pie but I'm like, 'oh my god,' every time I,
you know, I have a lot of friends that are security researchers and stuff, so every
time I learn about another piece of the pie like encryption, 'okay, yeah, let's go, let's do that.'
But no matter which title or path you take there are similar steps you can take to get a solid
foundation in this field, and there are lots of similarities in your goals and day-to-day work.
Here's how a variety of people in information in cyber security roles describe their jobs.
I am an information security professional here at Microsoft,
so what that means is I help secure data and services in the Microsoft cloud.
It's a lot like being detective actually. And the more, the more detective-like you are,
the better. My guys don't physically identify the malware and make our product, you know, detected.
My guys go looking for where do they come from, who is distributing it, how do we stop them,
how do we stop the entire industry that's, that's going against us?
If you were to boil it down to a concept it's curiosity. It drives the black hat side
of things. So, you know, I want to know how to break into this for my financial benefit so I'm
going to research it, I'm going to, you know, get some testing up, I'm going to try and break it,
I'm going to do the, you know, proof of concept, and then I'm going to execute.
Same way, white hat, you know, I want to know how to protect this stuff,
so I got to break into it, figure it out, and, you know, so we'll set up tests,
we'll proof of concept, and then we'll actually execute from the reverse end.
Security research is aligned more with like, actually investigating and finding
new vulnerabilities. The scary part is you're now hoping that someone else has secured this product
properly. I think for the most part we know, you know, many things are insecure, um, despite who
we purchase them from, so I think it's great to have researchers actually looking for these
issues and then being able to tell the companies, say, 'hey, this is the problem, you can fix this.'
For security analysts, the average salary is $99,730 a year. The cyber security industry is
obviously growing really fast and paying well, and right now there are more jobs than there are
people to fill them. Projected job growth over the next 10 years is higher than average. With
so many companies and schools going remote last year, cyber crime rocketed, and is expected to
stay a major threat in the future. That's why we need more people to get out there
and help protect our data. Seriously, listen to security intelligence response engineer Ben Brown.
Our lives are becoming so digitally connected, and so much more of things
that we wouldn't even think would be connected, our, you know, our clothing, our toaster, uh,
you know, everything in our house is now being brought online and is now a huge attack vector.
If you're interested in cyber security how can you get started in the field? Most security analysts
recommend you get a bachelor's degree before you enter their field of work. Bachelor's degrees in
computer science are common but more and more schools are actually beginning to offer degrees
specifically in cyber security or information security. Another huge thing employers are looking
for? Certifications! Labor market analytics firm EMSI says a C-I-S-S-P or 'CISSP' certification
is one of the top things employers are currently looking for on job postings for security analysts.
Some other certifications that are in high demand include GIAC, CISM, CISA and Security+. If you're
considering cybersecurity, but don't want to commit to a full-on degree or certification yet,
there are plenty of online classes where you can dip your toe into this world.
There's lots of communities out there that will help you learn about malware analysis,
and about threats and stuff like that. There's lots of websites. I mean,
right now is the perfect time, because 15 years ago there was nothing.
There is a lot you can learn, like just from checking out the internet.
There are options outside of, you know, just the traditional education.
There are like, free resources. Cybrary, they are doing like,
certification as if you were in the classroom, and they just recorded it, and it's free.
Outside of school there are also tons of extracurriculars you can
do to get exposed to cyber security, like competitions and conferences.
A lot of schools will have, uh, white hat clubs, or white hat researcher clubs,
something like that, that do capture the flag competitions. Capture the flag competitions really
run you through the paces of getting used to the sorts of things you'll see in the wild,
and you actually get a feel for the tools that you're going to have to use in the field.
Go find a DEF CON group and get involved. Find a 2600 group, find an owasp group,
go find out what your local communities are doing, and then go to your local hacking conferences.
Go to local security conferences, you know, and you just got to get involved and network.
And even once your foot's in the door, this is a field where lifelong learning
is key. You've got to stay on top of new technology and new vulnerabilities.
The criminals keep evolving and we need to continue to stay on top. And there’s always
something different. Somebody in Japan is seeing something we’ve never seen before.
Or we'll get a new piece of counterfeit coming out of Germany. Who knows what it might be,
but there's... it's, it's bringing those scenarios to the group and thinking about,
'okay, how do we answer this particular problem?'
It's one of, actually, the easiest fields to get a late start in,
because everything that anyone knew three years ago is, you know, it's constantly evolving.
Once you have your foundational knowledge down, there's some really cool options you can explore,
like working as a penetration tester. Pen testers are basically like ethical hackers.
They put digital systems to the test, try to find everything that can possibly go wrong,
and then help get those weaknesses eliminated before the bad guys exploit them.
I was never a creator, I was always a breaker. We have the opportunity to
play with the latest, greatest technology. I mean, we're not... we're not just testing web
applications. We test everything from passenger aircraft to video games to humans. I mean,
you know, sort of our mantra is: if you can build it, we can break it.
Here's another career that could open up to you even further down the road:
chief security officer. Cyber security has become so important that many
companies have added a c-suite level job to oversee security and privacy.
So if you're seriously interested in cyber security and want to make this your lifelong work,
you can aspire to become a chief security officer like Window Snyder.
I'm really proud of the work I did in privacy at Apple, trying to keep the data in control
of the user and out of Apple's reach. The work I was doing at Apple is very personal. Like,
I feel like especially the mobile devices... they're so personal.
So, giving people the tools to be in control of their privacy, for me it feels worthwhile.
As you can see, cyber security is something that touches our everyday lives,
and its importance is only going to grow over the next several years as we share
and store more and more information on devices. So if you're interested in problem solving and
love anything to do with technology, becoming a security analyst could be
your chance to use your skills and interests to make a serious difference in the world.
There's always something new that's interesting around security. It's
not going to stagnate anytime soon.
I think that one of the things that has always sort of invigorated my passion for
security testing, penetration testing, and all of that, is it's a community of people that don't
take no for an answer. Just because you're told something is a certain way, doesn't mean it is.
I have a calling, I think, to perfect protect people. That's why I like working at Microsoft,
is, I could do that at a very large scale, and that means a lot to me on a personal level.
If you think you might want to go into cyber security, hopefully one of these stories got you
thinking of all the possibilities for your future. Let us know by giving this video a thumbs up!