What do you need to start a career in cybersecurity?

Cybersecurity is an exciting career. Nearly everyone in the world spends a good amount of their waking time on the internet, thanks to the convenience of mobile phones. What makes cybersecurity extremely exciting is the thrill of going inside the minds of hackers who constantly find new ways to threaten people over the internet and more than that, it is the excitement of saving these people and the satisfaction of knowing that you are making the world a better place every day you are at work.

To start a career in cybersecurity, you don’t need to be of a certain age or experience. And even though it is a highly technical skill (not tough for someone who understands computers), you don’t really need to have a specific educational background. You can basically start anywhere and anytime. Here are a few things that you will, however, need if you are going to start a successful career in cybersecurity.

Passion for learning

If you have studied computer science: good for you. If you haven’t: don’t worry. Literally anything and everything you want to learn is available on the internet, but undergoing a suitable certificate course (for example Certified Ethical Hacker Certification) is what you’ll need to secure a job in cybersecurity in a company, be it private or public. 

On top of that, you should know that cybersecurity has many sub-disciplines that you can delve into and become an expert on. All you will need to do is to have a searing passion for learning and a flair for practising your skills in order to get better at what you do.

Problem-solving

If you are good at problem-solving, you will go a long way in cybersecurity. Cybersecurity is basically about solving problems for people, just like any other kind of security work). Everything you do at work will be ultimately aimed at making someone or something more secure. If you enjoy seeing things from a different perspective and devising strategies to crack problems, cybersecurity will please you beyond measure. If you also have a detective mind on top of all this, then the CHFI course is your calling.

Risk Management

Risk management are two words that can sum up cybersecurity. Protecting companies, organisations and people from cyber threats is what cybersecurity is all about. If you have a knack or talent for that, you have nothing to worry about. Sometimes, your job will be about putting out fires at work. Sometimes your job will be about protecting sensitive information from being compromised. Sometimes your job will be about creatively finding a way to dodge hackers from entering your computer systems. Risk management is in itself, a highly exciting task. It channels your survival instincts while keeping you on your toes in a manner that leaves you satisfied with your work.

The drive to make the world a better place

If you can drive satisfaction from the fact that every action of yours is helping the world becoming a better place, cybersecurity is the perfect career choice for you. The dark effects of cyber threats and attacks can seep into personal lives and prove detrimental to consumers, businesses, nations and vulnerable people. Apart from financial loss, companies lose valuable data and hard-earned shareholder trust. Cyber threats not only put businesses through irreparable damage but also puts innocent consumers, and nations at risk. If you have the drive and motivation to do something meaningful with a computer in your hand, you will fit very well in the role.

There is a lot more to cybersecurity than this, but all that is secondary and can be figured out if you are strong on the above basics. After all, remember that a career in cybersecurity is rich, fun, fulfilling and exciting, at the same time.