A security engineer is someone who is responsible for building and maintaining IT security solutions at businesses and organizations. This is considered an intermediate-level position. You are going to be responsible for developing security programs and procedures for projects and systems at the business you are working for, as well as dealing with any technical issues that arise. Security engineers identify IT threats and software vulnerabilities, as well as building and testing robust security systems, for example, firewalls. This person will also be the security point person when it comes to all things procedures and policy-related. With that being said, now that this is a job that tends to demand a considerable amount of prior work experience as well as an in-depth knowledge of hard skills. Examples of relevant hard skills include protocols, secure coding practices, and secure network architectures. Needless to say, the complexity and size of the organization will dictate the responsibilities that the security engineer has. The average salary for a security engineer is £102,394 per annum in the United States. Now that you know the security engineer job description, read on to discover more about this job role and what you are going to need to do in order to become a security engineer.
What are the Responsibilities of a Security Engineer?
There are a number of different responsibilities that you may have on any given day as a security engineer. This includes, but is not limited to, the following:
- Recommending modifications in regulatory, technical, and legal areas that impact IT security
- Analyzing and advising on new security technologies and program conformance
- Defining, implementing, and maintaining corporate security policies
- Supervising changes in telecommunications, facilities, hardware, software, and user needs
- Responding to information security problems during each stage of the lifecycle of a project
- Delivering technical reports and formal papers on findings from tests that have been carried out
- Testing security solutions using industry-standard analysis criteria
- Evaluating new processes and technologies, which will improve security capabilities
- Collaborating with colleagues on encryption, authorization, and authentication solutions
- Investigating intrusion incidents, mount incident responses, and conducting forensic investigations
- Developing automation scripts to track and handle incidents
- Performing vulnerability testing, security assessments, and risk analysis
- Configuring and installing firewalls and intrusion detection systems
- Creating new ways to solve current production security problems
Job Requirements for Security Engineers
If you read a typical job description for a security engineer, you will get a clear understanding of what is going to be expected of you. For example, it will be typically demanded that you have a bachelor or master’s degree in cybersecurity or a related field. You will also be expected to have a willingness to come up with security solutions that are innovative and creative. You will also need to be able to handle IT projects of a complex nature, have good leadership skills, as well as being familiar with both advanced and fundamental cybersecurity tools and concepts.
A lot of security engineers will work on their portfolio of hard skills, and so they will take one or several of the IT courses that are available today so that they can progress their skills. This includes GIAC, CISSP, CCNP Security, and/or CEH certifications. These qualifications are recognized around the world and they can certainly help you when securing jobs and promotions in the future.
In terms of hard skills, the more that you have in your arsenal, the more chances you have of being accepted for a job. Some of the hard skills you may wish to get familiar with include the following…
- Enhanced authentication, gateway anti-malware, network access controllers (NAC), social engineering, phishing, and Advanced Persistent Threats (APT)
- Web and network-related protocols, for example, routing protocols, HTTPS, HTTP, IPSEC, UDP, and TCP/IP
- VoIP, VLANs, VPNs, encryption standards and technologies, DNS, and subnetting
- Secure network architectures
- Encryption technologies and application security
- Access management and identity management principles
- MySQL/MSSQL database platforms
- Virtualization technologies
- Linux, UNIX, and Windows operating systems
- Threat modeling, ethical hacking, and secure coding practices
- Intrusion detection and prevention protocols as well as firewall protocols
- Vulnerability, penetration, and IDS/IPS testing
How Field Engineer Paved the Path for Businesses to Hire On-Demand Security Engineer Globally
If you are looking to hire a security engineer for your business, then you have certainly come to the right place. Here at FieldEngineer.com, we have paved the way for companies that wish to hire on-demand security engineers around the world. We have a database with over 40,000 tech professionals for you to choose from, spanning 180 different countries. Therefore, you should have no trouble finding the individual you require for the specific task at hand.
