Is it hard to do cyber security?

 information security engineer

A common question people ask about cyber security is if working in the field is difficult.  Understandably, many people want to know how difficult a cyber security career really is before they go down the path of pursuing this as a career.  Because so many people have asked this question, I decided to look into exactly how difficult a career in cyber security can be.

How hard is cyber security?  Careers in cyber security can range from moderately challenging to difficult, depending on the specific area of cyber security you pursue and the requirements of the individual job.  The wide variety of careers available in the cyber security field provides individuals with the flexibility to pursue a career that is as easy or difficult as they prefer.

So what specifically about a cyber security career makes it easier or more difficult than another? There are several factors that determine how hard or easy cyber security will be for a position that you choose, so let’s take a look at these factors now.

Factor #1:  Job Responsibility Increases Difficulty

In many fields, employees can expect increases in salary as responsibility increases.  While this is also generally true in cyber security, it is also true in cyber security that job difficulty often increases with the responsibility of a particular job.  For example, a lower level cyber security position that is responsible for a smaller network or for maintaining a low impact system would probably not be as difficult as another position with the same title at a larger employer that has more information security assets to protect.  While both jobs are similar, and the job postings may look alike, you could expect that the position that has the responsibility to protect a larger technology surface would be more difficult and stressful. Consider also that larger systems may receive more attacks than lesser known systems, which also increases the difficulty of the position.

Another way to view this is for positions that are not on the same level, but are higher level than others.  For example, senior level cyber security positions may require additional tasks, such as reporting to management.  Very high level positions, such as Chief Information Security Officers, may have the responsibility of briefing the CEO about cyber security threats on a daily basis.  Again, having more responsibility can increase the difficulty of the cyber security position you are shooting for.