The Beginners’ Guide to a Career in Cybersecurity

For many companies, a strong cybersecurity program can make or break their business. Most can’t risk a password breach or the PR nightmare of a cyber attack. And even fewer companies have the support needed to fully protect themselves against the various issues in the cyberworld.

That’s why cybersecurity is one of the top-demanded sectors. 

But what does a cybersecurity specialist do? What skills are required to become one? And is it worth the effort to get into the industry? Keep reading to learn more about the field and how to begin a career in cybersecurity.

What is cybersecurity?

Сybersecurity is a combination of measures used to protect systems, networks, and programs from attacks, data breaches, and phishing. These security protocols are used by every web and mobile application, even the simplest ones. If a system is facing the internet, it's vulnerable to attacks and requires cyber protection.

As technology evolves, so does cybersecurity, protecting companies from breaches and unintentional critical security errors. Cybersecurity specialists build programs to ensure that intruders don’t gain access to sensitive and private information. Nearly every industry relies on cybersecurity, but financial, medical, governmental, and law enforcement entities are the most familiar.

Even technology for private use, like smart homes, needs a high level of protection. There are known cases when smoke detectors connected to IoT become an instrument for ransomware attacks, basically locking out access from users to their files and demanding payment to unlock them.

The U.S. Bureau Of Labor Statistics predicts an above-average 32% growth in demand for cybersecurity specialists by 2031.

What do cybersecurity specialists do?

Cybersecurity professionals defend systems against cybersecurity risks, attacks, and vulnerabilities. Just like an all-seeing guard, a cybersecurity specialist is responsible for ensuring all parts of the software, networks, and system are encrypted and well-protected.

You might find various roles within cybersecurity. Here are just a few:

• Cybersecurity Engineers are specialists who develop secure programs, test them, and “fix” security issues.
• Network Security Specialists have a background in system and network administration and work on measures to protect local, private, and public networks.
• Information Security Analysts keep track of how the company’s information and employees are protected from cyberattacks.
• Penetration Testers act as software testers and even hackers, trying to breach the existing security to reveal flaws and threats.

Looking at these jobs, you can see that any area of cybersecurity deals with protection and proactive communication. Some common responsibilities of a cybersecurity specialist include:

• Development, testing, audit, and implementation of security systems.
• Detecting vulnerable points in networks and systems and preventing threats.
• Responding to security events and safeguarding against them in the future.
• Reproducing or mimicking security breaches to identify weak points.
• Generating reports and evaluations of the security system.

What should I study to get a job in cybersecurity?

If those responsibilities sound interesting to you, you’re on the right track for a role in cybersecurity. Let’s look into a typical job posting for a cybersecurity specialist and identify the requirements and skills needed to become one.

As you see, the most important requirement for a cybersecurity engineer is to have a technical background. 

Software engineering is the first step to becoming a skillful security specialist. You'll have to know the basics of web and application development and be fluent in at least one programming language. You should also know how databases and the backend work. But not to worry! Mastering all this in less than 10 months is possible at our Software Engineering Bootcamp.

Next, familiarize yourself with the best information security practices. By the time you graduate from a Software Engineering Bootcamp, you’ll know all about secure authentication and protocols (SSH, OAuth, and the like). Your next step will be obtaining a cybersecurity certification, such as CompTIA Security+ (ISC)², Security Certified Practitioner, and Certified Ethical Hacker (C|EH).

Secure your next role

Want to get the best out of a technical career and build a secure future? Start your journey with TripleTen’s Software Engineering Bootcamp to open the many doors to progress and promotion. No prior experience in programming is required!