6 Ways to Hack Your Cyber Security Career
According to Zippa, there will be 50 billion IoT-connected devices by 2025. In addition, Zippa estimates 90% of the world’s big data has been produced and collected throughout the last two years. With so many devices flooding the tech space and producing data more quickly than ever before, it has become critical for there to be qualified experts trained to protect and secure the data.
Keeping up with the ever-evolving world of technology can be challenging regardless of where you’re at in your cyber security career. To help you on your journey to cyber security expertise, we’ve compiled a list of six ways you can hack your cyber career to get ahead of the curve and the competition.
Develop Core IT Knowledge
If you’re just starting out in cyber security, the first step you should take as you kickstart your career is to ensure you have the necessary foundational IT knowledge to build from. Without knowing security, networking, cloud, and coding basics, you might have a difficult time grasping more complex topics related to penetration testing, ransomware analysis, and threat hunting. There are countless introductory training courses and resources available that have been designed to help you master the basics before you narrow your focus and determine where you want your career to take you.
Focus Your Training
Once you’ve built up your knowledge of the IT essentials, you should work towards honing in on areas you are most interested in. To do this, we suggest continuing your training while focusing more heavily on specific aspects of cyber security. Whether you want to defend a business as part of the blue team, uncover an organization’s security vulnerabilities with the red team, or take a more dynamic approach to ethically attack and defend on the purple team, it’s important to set your focus and develop your skills through engaging and practical training.
Get Hands-On
As you work towards becoming an expert in your field, there’s no better way to get there than by getting hands-on experience. One of the many benefits of online IT training is the ability to put your knowledge and skills to the test in secure, virtual lab environments. In these settings, you can work in scenarios designed to mimic situations you might face while on the job without the risk of making a costly mistake. By getting hands-on, you’re also afforded the opportunity to gain valuable industry experience as you prepare for the practical portion of an interview or the day-to-day aspects of working a cyber security job.
Certify Your Skills
After boosting your resume with classroom and lab training, the next step to show off your skills is to get certified. Many employers require candidates to be certified in one or multiple areas of cyber security prior to hiring them. Other employers may also require you to maintain certification status as part of your role. Fortunately, there are a multitude of certifications to obtain based on where you wish to take your career, what skills you already have, and where you want to focus your knowledge. Some of the most popular certifications include the eLearnSecurity Junior Penetration Tester, CompTIA Security+, Offensive Security Exploit Developer, and the eLearnSecurity Certified Threat Hunting Professional.
Form Connections
In any industry, it’s important to network and build relationships with people who are at a similar or more advanced point in their career and have had the time to learn the ropes. This is especially true for those finding their way in cyber security. While training is a great asset and indicator of what you can encounter while on the job, finding people who can share their experiences and lessons learned is just as valuable. The IT industry has several online communities including Discord, Twitter, LinkedIn, and the INE Community, all of which are filled with people ready to connect and help. Another great way to form those valuable connections is through in-person cyber events and conferences, such as the RSA Conference, Black Hat, and DEF CON.
Build Soft Skills
Having technical skills in a cyber security role is critical to your success, but soft skills are equally as valuable and often overlooked. In addition to knowing how to debug software, write code, and map networks, you should also be able to effectively communicate, remain flexible, have strong attention to detail, and work well as part of a team. While these skills may not translate as clearly on a resume, they shine through while on the job and are essential to advancing your career. To learn more about the key soft skills to have, check out our soft skills blog post.
Whether you’re finding ways to hack your career or are learning the skills needed to ethically hack a client’s server, INE is here to support your journey to cyber security expertise. With browser-based virtual lab environments, thousands of hours of instructor-led training, and guided learning available on our platform, the sky's the limit when it comes to achieving your career goals.
About INE
INE is the premier provider of technical training for the IT industry. INE is revolutionizing the digital learning industry through the implementation of adaptive technologies and a proven method of hands-on training experiences. Our portfolio of training is built for all levels of technical learning, specializing in advanced networking technologies, next generation security and infrastructure programming and development. Want to talk to a training advisor about our course offerings and training plans? Give us a call at 877-224-8987 or email us at sales@ine.com.
