IT Security Specialist

IT Security Specialists Defend an Organization’s Information Systems.

In today's era of rapidly escalating threats and sophisticated cyber warfare, organizations need to be vigilant in combating attackers and protecting information assets. IT security specialists leverage an in-depth understanding of cyber security threats, technologies, and countermeasures to design and implement secure computer systems.
IT security specialists install, configure and upgrade security software to prevent cyber-attacks, educate [technical and non-technical] employees on computer security, monitor networks for security breaches, and inevitably respond to successful attacks with the appropriate countermeasures. Some IT security professionals specialize in computer crime investigation; these highly trained security pros use cutting-edge forensics hardware and software to gather evidence for use in prosecuting cyber crimes.
Workforce demand for computer security specialists is high across all organizational structures and verticals, including corporations, schools, medical practices, as well as public enterprises and government agencies. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, IT security specialist employment will explode by 37% from 2012 to 2022, over 3x faster than the 11% average for all occupations, placing it among the nation's fastest growing career paths.

IT Security Specialist Skills & Responsibilities

Typical day-to-day duties and marketable cyber security skill sets include the following. IT security specialists:

• Develop plans to safeguard computer files against unauthorized modification, destruction or disclosure.
• Choose, implement, monitor and upgrade computer anti-virus and malware protection systems.
• Encrypt data transmissions and erect firewalls to conceal confidential information during transmit.
• Implement password authentication to keep unauthorized users from accessing sensitive data files.
• Modify security files to incorporate new software, correct errors, and change user access status.
• Perform risk assessments and tests on running data processing activities and security measures.
• Educate workers about computer security and promote security awareness and security protocols.
• Keep accurate and current backup files of all important data on the shared corporate network.
• IT security pros who specialize in computer forensics gather evidence for prosecuting cyber crimes.
• Computer forensics specialists can set up & operate an investigator’s lab, and process computer crime scenes.

IT Security Specialist Salary

• Average salary for Information Technology Security Specialist (USA): $87,000

IT Security Specialist Salary $87,000

Salaries for IT security specialists and related positions by job role, seniority and technological specialization:

• Firewall Administrator: $66,000
• Information Security Consultant: $80,000
• Information Security Analyst: $85,000
• IT Security Specialist salary: $87,000
• Computer Forensics Investigator: $88,000
• Certified Ethical Hacker: $89,000
• Vulnerability Analyst: $89,000
• IT Security Engineer: $92,000
• Network Security Engineer: $95,000
• Cyber Security Analyst: $98,000
• Cyber Intelligence Analyst: $98,000
• IT Security Manager: $102,000
• SAP Security Administrator: 115,000
• Lead Digital Forensics Examiner: $115,000
• Security Solutions Architect: $150,000

The hourly wage for IT security professionals in the U.S. and Canada ranges from $21 to $74 per hour, dependent upon employee location, job-role, certifications and experience level.

IT Security Specialist Education Requirements

Hiring managers for IT security specialist positions generally require at least an undergraduate degree (associate or bachelor) in information security, computer information systems, network security, computer science or a related field of study. IT job experience and security-centric certifications will aid candidates in securing IT security specialist positions.
Specific coursework and in-demand skill sets to look for in an IT security specialist education program include networking and network security, operating system administration, business continuity & disaster recovery, intrusion detection, hardware & software configuration, risk management and computer forensics. IT security specialists need strong communication skills, as they are responsible for educating technical and non-technical staffers on computer security protocols and raising information security awareness.