Termed as ‘the age of the internet’, the 21^st century is advancing rapidly towards a digital manifestation. With everything just a touch away people are growing comfortable with the alleviated lifestyle granted by the internet. But along with it comes the risk of cyber security which has emerged as one of the most critical predicaments for internet users. A lot of data being transferred over the internet starting from private conversations, financial transactions, business details, etc. can cause a ruckus if mishandled or misused by someone.  With an abundant number of online scams doing the rounds business organizations are ready to pay in huge just to keep their data safe from hackers and cyber attackers. According to the Bureau of Labour Statistics, the rate of growth for jobs in information security is projected at 37% from 2012–2022, that’s much faster than the average for all other occupations. As we live in a data-driven society, cyber security professionals are highly in demand making it one of the most sought after career options.

Penetrating deeply into it, here are some of the reasons for which cyber security is luring out today’s generation as a better career option:

1. Job growth is vibrant: With a tremendous potential of unlimited growth, this sector poses an ever-expanding scope in career as well as from a learning perspective. With an immense growth of 94% over the last six years, it is expected to continue for the foreseeable future.
2. Better pay scale: Professionals in this domain tend to earn 9% more than other employees in this sector. The companies are keen to acquire tech minds to avert the cybercriminals from breaching the security systems which effectively describes the number of perks in this field.
3. Greater job security: Companies are far likely to lay off cyber security professionals in comparison to other employees as it will lead to compromise of security of the corporation. Finding suitable replacements in this domain will be both difficult and expensive due to the lesser supply of cyber security professionals over demand.
4. Job satisfaction: As exciting as it sounds, cyber security will never be the same boring 9 to 5 job. Apart from facing puzzles and new challenges every day this job will give the satisfaction of real-time impact over the digital world.

While cyber security falls under the IT department in many companies, not everyone with a sound knowledge of computer programming will fit right in the elusive area of cyber security. With updated knowledge about the developments in endlessly evolving technology, the cyber security professionals are expected to have a strong grasp on emerging web issues, networking, and threat detection. To secure companies against incoming malware threats; here are some skills that are essential to learning for aspiring individuals who want to make a career in this domain:

1. DevSecOps: It deals with the introduction of security fundamentals prior to the app development life-cycle which helps in diminishing the vulnerabilities and increasing the security measures by integrating the safety controls.
2. IoT Security: IoT security experts deal with attack countermeasures, IoT hacking, and investigation of potential IoT threats.
3. Vulnerability Assessment: By recognizing the likely targets of cyber attackers, vulnerability assessment professionals can prevent attacks using a permutation of methods such as hardware troubleshooting, antivirus software installation, and network security.
4. Customer Service: These teams possess some degree of customer service skills to interact with the company’s internal clients or other partners giving people sufficient time to vent before moving over to the problem solving phase.
5. Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning: AI and ML can be used to identify the loopholes more effectively while dealing with digital attacks.
6. Intrusion Detection and Penetration Testing: With increasing cyberattacks against companies, the demand for IT professionals with penetration testing and intrusion detection skills are increasing to identify probable vulnerabilities and shield the organization.
7. Cloud Security: Cloud provides privacy and security to companies keeping private data and confidential information safe, which makes individuals knowing about Cloud Security in great demand.
8. Malware Protection: As new malware variants are emerging every year, cyber security professionals must implement the skills required to secure companies against incoming malware threats.

With a tremendous scope of personal and professional development, this job will expose the professional to a multitude of new challenges, situations, and opportunities. As you will strive to grow as an expert in this domain you will unlock many potentials within yourself paving the way to reach greater altitudes.