What is the role of a security engineer?

 security systems engineer job description

Systems Engineers implement, support, maintain, and manage IT services, including networking, IT security, email, and disaster recovery. Systems Engineers provide advanced technical support for desktop, server, and networking issues. Systems Engineers ensure all IT services are properly maintained and upgraded, including anti-virus, backups, imaging, and patching. Systems Engineers provide subject matter expertise for both hardware and software.

A great job title typically includes a general term, level of experience and any special requirements. The general term will optimize your job title to show up in a general search for jobs of the same nature. The level of experience will help you attract the most qualified applicants by outlining the amount of responsibility and prior knowledge required. And if your position is specialized, consider including the specialization in the job title as well. But avoid using internal titles, abbreviations or acronyms to make sure people understand what your job posting is before clicking.

it security engineer job description

 it security engineer job description

Job brief

We are looking for a Computer Security Specialist to implement and maintain our security systems. You will be responsible for preventing unauthorized access to our data and responding to privacy breaches.

In this role, you should be knowledgeable about security frameworks and systems. If you’re also a problem-solver and quick decision-maker, we’d like to meet you.

Your goal will be to ensure that our technology infrastructure is well-protected.

Responsibilities

• Analyze IT specifications to assess security risks
• Design and implement safety measures and data recovery plans
• Install, configure and upgrade security software (e.g. antivirus programs)
• Secure networks through firewalls, password protection and other systems
• Inspect hardware for vulnerable points of access
• Monitor network activity to identify issues early and communicate them to IT teams
• Act on privacy breaches and malware threats
• Serve as a security expert and conduct trainings when needed
• Draft policies and guidelines

Requirements

• Proven experience as a Computer Security Specialist
• Programming skills are preferred (e.g. knowledge of C++, PHP languages)
• Familiarity with security frameworks (e.g. NIST Cybersecurity framework) and risk management methodologies
• Knowledge of patch management, firewalls and intrusion detection/prevention systems (e.g. TippingPoint)
• Familiarity with public key infrastructure (PKI) and cryptographic protocols (e.g. SSL/ TLS)
• An analytical mind with excellent problem-solving ability
• Outstanding communication and organization skills
• Decision-making skills
• BSc/BA in Computer Science, Information Technology or a related field; professional certification (e.g. CompTIA Security+, CISSP) is a plus

Why is information security?

 information security engineer

For many organisations, information is their most important asset, so protecting it is crucial.

Information security is “the practice of preventing unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, inspection, recording or destruction of information”. Information can take many forms, such as electronic and physical.

Information security performs four important roles:

1. Protects the organisation’s ability to function.
2. Enables the safe operation of applications implemented on the organisation’s IT systems.
3. Protects the data the organisation collects and uses.
4. Safeguards the technology the organisation uses.

The challenges

In an increasingly interconnected environment, information is exposed to a growing number and wider variety of risks. Threats such as malicious code, computer hacking and denial-of-service attacks have become more common, ambitious and sophisticated, making implementing, maintaining and updating information security in an organisation more of a challenge.

How do you move forward?

Implementing information security in an organisation can protect the technology and information assets it uses by preventing, detecting and responding to threats, both internal and external.

Both senior management and IT are responsible for the organisation’s information security strategy, although in smaller organisations this job will likely sit with risk and security, data and compliance, and IT and information security managers and directors (sometimes this is just one person).

To support the information security strategy, it’s important to improve staff awareness of information security issues through training and initiatives. Organisations also need to enforce their information security policies and review them regularly in order to meet security requirements.

Threats and vulnerabilities must be evaluated and analysed. This means establishing and implementing control measures and procedures to minimise risk, and auditing to measure the performance of controls.

Another key part of your information security strategy and project is GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) compliance. Cisco’s 2019 Data Privacy Benchmark Study found that organisations that met the majority of the GDPR’s requirements were 15% less likely to be breached than organisations that were more than a year away from compliance.

Introducing CyberComply – Save time and money, and maintain and accelerate your cyber compliance

 Vigilant Software aims to make data protection, cyber security, information security and risk management straightforward and affordable for all. Drawing on our years of experience developing and deploying risk management tools and services, our products reduce the complexity of your implementation project.

Our CyberComply platform guides organisations through cyber risk and privacy monitoring and compliance. It’s designed for risk and security, data and compliance, and IT and information security professionals working in small- and medium-sized organisations for which cyber risk and privacy management are critical.

It has been developed to:

• Be scalable to address evolving and increasing threats;
• Be repeatable for frequent risks assessments;
• Reduce variability by helping you make consistent decisions based on fact rather than human interpretation;
• Be maintainable for multiple stakeholders across your organisation; and
• Have everything you need in one place for governance, risk and compliance, making it a quick and cost-effective route to compliance.

Integrated into the platform are the cyber risk management tools vsRisk Cloud and Compliance Manager, the privacy management tools the Data Flow Mapping Tool and the DPIA Tool, and the GDPR compliance tool GDPR Manager.

For more information on CyberComply or to see the full suite of products available, visit our website.

Steps to Become an Information Assurance Engineer

 The field of information assurance draws people from many different backgrounds, but most possess a drive and passion for cybersecurity and technology. Acquiring the right education, work experience, and skills can help people with these interests to move into a career as an information assurance engineer.

Step One: Earn a Bachelor’s Degree

Information assurance engineers usually hold a bachelor’s degree in computer science, programming, or an equivalent subject that provides a well-rounded background in computers. A growing number of universities provide degrees that are specific to the work of information assurance engineers, such as an online Bachelor of Science in Cybersecurity.

A bachelor’s in cybersecurity provides a broad computer education along with instruction tailored to meeting the demands unique to the field of cybersecurity. Students receive training in ethical hacking as well as defensive strategies in security information and event management. The curriculum covers topics including digital forensics, malware and incident response, compliance, and business processes. The degree offers the necessary knowledge and skills required for information assurance engineers to be able to respond both offensively and defensively to cyber threats.

Step Two: Gain On-the-Job Experience

Getting the right education is an important stepping stone to a career as an information assurance engineer. But most employers also want candidates for entry-level positions to have at least one to two years of experience in a related field. The specifics for this requirement usually depends on the size of the organization. Many information assurance engineers initially work as network or systems administrators.

Mid-level information assurance engineer positions usually require several years of work in information assurance, and more senior positions tend to require five to 10 years of experience. For these more advanced positions, employers want to have confidence that candidates possess sufficiently strong technical skills in a variety of networks, platforms, and databases, which only come with experience.

Step Three: Attain Training and Certification

Securing employment as an information assurance engineer can also rely on acquiring the right certifications. Employers seek some way to validate that a potential employee possesses knowledge of industry best practices. For this reason, they often require candidates to hold relevant certifications that serve as proof of their competencies.

While not mandatory, the following certifications may help build a career in information assurance engineering:

• Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH)
• Cisco Certified Network Professional Security (CCNP Security)
• Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP)

Being competitive means keeping up with the latest developments in cybersecurity, which can mean subscribing to newsletters published by industry leaders, attending hackathons and tech conferences, and following news stories about data breaches. There are also a myriad of seminars, webinars, and courses available that can expand and hone the skills of information assurance engineers.

Step Four: Consider Earning a Master’s Degree for Advancement

Information assurance engineers with work experience can also advance their careers by earning an online master’s in cybersecurity. According to the data analytics company Burning Glass Technologies, this degree may bump the salary of an information assurance engineer by $6,500 a year. The degree delves into the intricacies of cyber technology and sharpens the leadership and business skills critical to positions in upper management.

The curriculum expands upon the foundational knowledge provided by bachelor’s degree programs in areas including digital forensics and incident breaches, deepening analysis and providing for the development of a more sophisticated skill set. Earning a master’s in cybersecurity can offer information assurance engineers more opportunities for advancement in their careers than they’d have with experience and a bachelor’s degree alone.

Information Assurance Engineer Salaries

Information assurance engineers’ salaries vary depending on experience as well as the location of the job, and compensation packages tend to be larger for professionals who have spent more time working in the field. The median annual salary for information assurance engineers in 2018 was $85,367, according to PayScale. The compensation website reports salaries ranging from $56,603 to $132,769 a year.

PayScale reports that the average entry-level salary for information assurance engineers is $75,000 a year. Those with five to 10 years of experience garner salaries that average $90,000 a year. Senior information engineers earn on average $93,000 a year. And those with more than 20 years of experience earn on average $118,000 a year.

How Hard is a Cybersecurity Degree?

 

 infosec engineer

This article is about the difficulty level of most cybersecurity degrees. To see our article on the most important classes in cybersecurity degrees, see our article here. To see the expected cost of cybersecurity degrees, go here.

A lot of people ask if a cyber security degree is a difficult degree to obtain.  Obviously, it is true that some degrees tend to be more difficult than others. Since cyber security is a newer degree option available at most colleges, I decided to take a look and see how difficult a cyber security degree is compared to other degree majors.

So, is a cyber security degree difficult?  A cyber security degree typically has average to above average difficulty compared to other degree programs.  Cyber security degrees tend to be more challenging than non-research type majors, such as programs in the humanities or business, but are usually not as difficult as degrees in research or lab intensive areas, such as science and engineering.

Let’s take a look at the specific parts of a cyber security degree that make it easier or more challenging than other options, and whether a degree in cyber security may be for you.

Why a cyber security degree is easier than some other options

When comparing college programs at the associate or bachelor’s degree level, an objective review indicates that most cyber security programs are not as difficult as many programs in science and engineering related areas.  Specifically, degrees in fields such as biochemistry, physics, mechanical engineering and even computer science appear to be more challenging than common degree programs in cyber security. Here are a few reasons why.

Math and science requirements are easier

The first factor that indicates a cyber security program may be less difficult than the other majors listed above is that most cyber security programs that were reviewed did not require higher level math or science general education classes.  In many cases, cyber security programs were limited to one lab-based science requirement and a math course requirement that was lower level, such as college math or statistics. Most programs did not require higher level or multiple science classes or a higher level math, such as calculus.  

In comparison, all of the science and engineering programs reviewed, including those in computer science, either recommended or require at least one level of calculus and multiple lab-based science courses.  These courses are often the most challenging for students enrolling for the first time in college or returning to college after an extended period of time. If you pursue a degree in cyber security, you can often find a path to graduation without being required to take calculus, chemistry or other subjects known to be challenging.

What Is The Process To Achieve A CCNA Designation?

 

Network Security Engineer - CCNA

 information security engineer jobs

What is a CCNA Level Engineer and What Do They Do?

The IT support and services industry is somewhat different than other industries offering professional services to businesses. While the financial industry, lawyers, accountants, and others have industry-standard certifications and required licensing to do business, the IT industry does not.

That’s not to say that there are no benchmarks that IT services professionals meet. Instead of an industry governing body – or the government – setting specific qualifications to do business as an IT professional, certifications are earned from the various hardware and software vendors to prove competency in servicing that specific hardware or software solution.

CCNA is one of those vendor certifications that network engineers work, learn, and test to earn.

CCNA stands for “Cisco Certified Network Associate.”

As you’ve likely guessed, Cisco – the world’s leader in networking and security hardware and software – is the vendor that administers the testing to earn the CCNA certification.

CCNA certification sits on the second tier (Associate) of a four-tier Cisco Career Path Certification program. The four tiers are:

• Tier #1 – Entry
• Tier #2 – Associate
• Tier #3 – Professional
• Tier #4 – Expert

The CCNA designation is assigned to individuals that have successfully completed proprietary Cisco exams in one or more of the following disciplines.

• CCNA Routing and Switching
• CCNA Security
• CCNA Service Provider
• CCNA Cloud
• CCNA Collaboration
• CCNA Wireless
• CCNA Cyber Ops
• CCNA Data Centre
• CCNA Industrial

What Is The Process To Achieve A CCNA Designation?

The training to take the exams is available to applicants in the form of online courses, hard copy books, and in a classroom setting. Once the individual has gone through the material and has proven an acceptable understanding of the material, he/she goes on to take the exam.

Cisco’s CCNA exams are different from the exams you took in school. Cisco exams do not have a set pass/fail score. The pass/fail score fluctuates according to statistical analysis. So going into the exam, the candidate does not know how many questions he/she must answer correctly to pass the test.

After the candidate takes the exam, a report is generated by Cisco showing how the candidate did on each piece of the exam along with an indication as to whether the candidate passed or failed.

If the candidate passes, they are then CCNA certified for the next three years. The recertification process involves taking the exam (but not exactly the same questions) again or taking a test from a higher Cisco certification tier.

What does a security engineer do?

 security engineering job description

Cyber Security Engineers help businesses by protecting their computer and networking systems from potential hackers and cyber-attacks. They safeguard sensitive data of a business from hackers and cyber-criminals who often create new ways to infiltrate sensitive databases.

Cyber Security Engineer Job Description Template

We are looking to hire a Cyber Security Engineer with an analytical mind and a detailed understanding of cyber security methodologies. Cyber Security Engineers are expected to have a meticulous attention to detail, outstanding problem-solving skills, work comfortably under pressure and deliver on tight deadlines.

To ensure success, a Cyber Security Engineer must display an excellent understanding of technology infrastructures using Firewalls, VPN, Data Loss Prevention, IDS/IPS, Web-Proxy and Security Audits. Top candidates will be comfortable working with a variety of technologies, security problems and troubleshooting of the network.

Cyber Security Engineer Responsibilities:

• Planning, implementing, managing, monitoring and upgrading security measures for the protection of the organizations data, systems and networks.
• Troubleshooting security and network problems.
• Responding to all system and/or network security breaches.
• Ensuring that the organization's data and infrastructure are protected by enabling the appropriate security controls.
• Participating in the change management process.
• Testing and identifying network and system vulnerabilities.
• Daily administrative tasks, reporting and communication with the relevant departments in the organization.