In today’s highly-digitized world, developments in computer science permeate every area of our lives — from email and banking to social media. Countless industries also rely on technology, with most of their operations managed on programs that run on complex systems. While these innovations allow us to scale up and focus on efficiency, they require extensive protection from malicious cyberattacks. Take this alarming headline from CNBC last November, which reads: “U.S. banks processed roughly $1.2 billion in ransomware payments in 2021, according to a federal report.”
The scale of these threats makes it imperative for organizations to heighten their cybersecurity measures, and in fact, the rising demand for cybersecurity professionals is growing 2.4 times faster than the overall rate in the country. This is best reflected in the huge demand for cybersecurity graduates from top universities, with one report showing that UC Berkeley graduates are landing jobs with salaries of more than $200,000. In order to meet this demand more universities are expanding their cybersecurity programs through online courses. Online cybersecurity programs reduce the time studying to 2.5 years, giving students a faster road to employment than those studying on-campus. Graduates will have trained in cyber law, digital forensics, database design, programming, cloud security, incident response, and malware analysis, allowing them to enter a wide range of industries.
Given the range of topics listed above, it’s also clear that there are many areas you can specialize in. Below are a few positions you can try for that are guaranteed to boost your career in 2023:
Pre-Sales Cybersecurity Engineer
Before products and services are sold, companies must ensure that they have no vulnerabilities that can cause harm to their customers upon use. Pre-sales cybersecurity engineers are primarily responsible for this. Collaborating with other professionals in the company, they participate in pre-sales operations like security design, presentation delivery, and product-specific training. They must also work with customers to cultivate an understanding of their security needs and requirements. From here, they offer design solutions to meet these specifications and improve a product or service accordingly. The average salary for a pre-sales security engineer is $102,905.
Malware Analyst
Malware is developed by cyber criminals to harm or exploit devices or networks. Malware analysts work with companies to protect their networks from specific types of malware. Through reverse engineering, these analysts can determine malware origins, how it functions, what damage it can cause, how to remove it from a system, and how to defend a network against it in the future. If needed, malware analysts can also recover data from malware-damaged drives. The average salary for a malware analyst ranges from $90,000 to $150,000.
Cloud Security Specialist
Cloud computing is one of the most crucial tech innovations right now. It involves storing, sharing, and backing up data on online servers. Businesses and individuals can then access their data remotely without overloading their personal or work devices. Although this can heighten convenience, efficiency, and reliability, the cloud isn’t immune to penetration by hackers. Cloud security specialists are tasked with tackling some of the biggest challenges of the cloud. These include complying with an industry’s best practices and regulatory frameworks, identifying software vulnerabilities, and detecting malware. They also assess cloud infrastructures to cover any vulnerabilities and implement security measures where needed. Finally, they must be quick on their feet to address any threats in cloud systems. Should any cyberattacks occur, they are responsible for incident response and recovery. The average salary for a cloud security specialist is $80,826 per year
Computer Forensic Analyst
Computer forensic analysts investigate computer-related crimes. Most of these professionals collaborate with law enforcement agencies, so their job intersects with the criminal justice field. They may work on various cases like cybercrimes, fraud, hacking, espionage, terrorism, and activities related to illegal content. They use forensic tools and software to collect information within legal parameters and may need to recover damaged or deleted data. With how complex their cases may be, they need to have a deep understanding of cybersecurity principles and use creative methods for carrying out their tasks. The average salary for a computer forensic analyst is $74,805.
A career in cybersecurity is one of the most lucrative pursuits in 2023. By deepening your knowledge of these jobs, you can find a career path that is both in demand and well-suited to your skills and interests.
