Cyber security skills have recently become extremely attractive to employers. Those who are able to harness the power of cyber security often get better jobs, boosts in their pay, and are generally more satisfied with their careers.
You do not necessarily have to be a someone in the cybersecurity field to see the many immense benefits of this skillset. Everyone who is involved with in the technology sphere, and businesses of all industries, should focus on building these technical skills as soon as possible.
In this article, we will cover what cyber security strengths are, why they are so important, and how you can acquire them.
What are Cyber Security Skills?
It may be tempting to immediately start building your strengths, but consider learning about what cyber security skills are first.
Cyber security skills include numerous abilities that allow you to be a better employee and leader. They encapsulate both technical and soft skills and can be applied to fields outside of computing, too. In general, cyber security skills are the abilities that allow to maintain a safe digital space.
They keep your business free from cyber attacks, or at least reduce the likelihood of them occurring. In addition, these skills can also make you more efficient and productive as an employee.
Cybersecurity skills are mostly technical abilities, or hard skills. But, there are also many soft skills that would be included as a type of cyber skill. Most commonly, these abilities are used in STEM fields, particularly by coders, computer scientists, engineers, and cyber security professionals. However, they are used beyond these fields, too.
Why Is it Important To Recognize Cyber Security Skills & Their Benefits?
Knowing your skills provides a plethora of benefits to any individual. This certainly applies to cyber security skills, too. Whether you are someone who struggles to stand out at work, or simply wants to become the best professional you can be, knowing your skills will be crucial to your success.
You cannot reach your potential at your current workplace or acquire your dream cybersecurity job if you ignore this skillset. Instead, consider the following benefits you will gain from investing in your cybersecurity abilities:
- Helping you become a better problem solver and looking at problems in a more creative way
- Allows you to better harness the power of technology to boost efficiency
- Increases your confidence, which leads to you taking more risks and others being aware of your strengths
- Acquiring jobs you are truly passionate about by displaying your strengths to interviewers
- Increasing the overall productivity of your entire team, thus boosting revenue and profit
- Avoiding conflicts and setbacks caused by digital problems
- Gaining a competitive advantage due to increased efficiency and creativity
- Helps your company become more innovative which appeals to consumers
- Gives you the opportunity to acquire remote work and work with a wide range of companies
- Increases your attention to detail and accuracy when at work
15 Examples of Cyber Security Skills
Did those benefits entice you to start building your cyber security skills? Great! You should know, though, that cybersecurity encapsulates much more than just coding. There are many other technical skills, and even soft skills, that are just as important when you are trying to become a better cybersecurity specialist.
Learn about many of the types of cybersecurity skills, and then select which ones you will focus on. A few of these skills include:
1. Risk management
Sometimes, taking risks is fantastic. After all, you do not grow when you live in your comfort zone. But, taking too many uncalculated risks too often could cause some serious problems. In fact, this could upset your entire team. You should not gamble with certain parts of your work. Collect data and manage risks to understand what risks are worth taking and which are not.
2. Processing information
As someone in the technical industry, you will need to constantly react to information, save it, and process it. This requires you to have a good memory and some strong organizational skills too. When you receive cybersecurity threats, you have a limited amount of time to respond to them before you become vulnerable. Thus, acting quickly and processing in dog ration is crucial.
3. Software knowledge
If you want to succeed in this industry, you need to have software skills. Every day, you will be using certain softwares, including virtual machines, operating systems, spreadsheet softwares, analytical software, and more. If you cannot master your use of software, your efficiency will be immensely limited. Focus on the most commonly used cybersecurity softwares in your company and master them. It will also reduce your frustration and stress.
4. Coding
While we previously outlined coding is not the only skill needed for cybersecurity skill development, it is still necessary. In the cybersecurity industry, code is a key part of many products. For instance, if your want to protect a company’s WordPress website, you may need to write code for a unique plugin. Knowing other programming languages like Python, C++, and more can help you expand your customer base.
5. Collaboration
No matter which job you choose to go into, knowing how to collaborate can be extremely beneficial. In the cybersecurity sphere, you will need to speak with both clients and coworkers. Knowing how to effectively work in a team and collaborate will boost your efficiency and allow you to achieve your goals far quicker.
6. Threat knowledge
Businesses are constantly being threatened by hackers and viruses. Cybersecurity specialists know how to recognize threats and respond accordingly. Business lose significant amounts of money when they overlook security threats. This is one of key reasons for hiring digital security personnel.
7. Thorough understanding of operating systems
No matter which operating system your company uses, knowing how to recognize threats and analyze them on numerous OS types can help your entire team. Consider learning more information about Linux, Windows, and other similar operating systems. However, the future is focused on mobile operations. So, you should try to focus on understanding Android and iOS as well as the common security threats each system encounters.
8. Network Vulnerability Detection
You just be able to quickly find and react to vulnerabilities in your network. Every day, new threats are growing and could potentially impact your business. You cannot allow these threats to develop. Those who overlook such network vulnerabilities often end up losing thousands, maybe even millions, or dollars. It is absolutely crucial to detect and react to network vulnerability.
9. Aware of regulations
Cybersecurity professionals need to be aware of regulations in their region. There are a plethora of different regulations you need to be aware of, including many that are included under the GDPR (or general data protection regulation). If you do not work within the regulations, you may have serious trouble with the law. Cooperating with regulations will also help your customers feel comfortable with sharing their data with your company.
10. Communication
Communication is a skillset that is useful in nearly every job and industry. If you are interested in career in cybersecurity, you must focus on boosting your communication skills. It will make you a better presenter, and could allow you to better articulate why you could be a great employee to potential employers. Communication is about more than just talking and presenting, though. It also means asking meaningful questions and employing active listening.
11. Critical thinking
Critical thinking and problem solving is also crucial for everyone interested in cybersecurity careers. Boosting your critical thinking could mean the difference between saving a client and allowing a security issue to turn into a major problem for that business. Critical thinker think about many possible ways to tackle security tasks and look for the most efficient and practical methods. They follow through with standard security practices and regulations, too.
12. Adaptability
In today’s business world, everything is constantly changing. If you are set in your ways and ignore the need to change, your business will be negatively impacted. It will put you behind your competition and you may even lose your competitive advantage. An adaptable mindset also allows you to be more flexible with your hours and with working in a team.
13. Organization
Organizational skills are needed for any person interested in careers in cybersecurity. Organization helps individuals stay focused and achieve their goals. It also improves their productivity and efficiency. Organization can even decrease stress. In an industry where time matters, organization can truly give you an immense advantage over competitors.
14. Leadership skills
The best cybersecurity professional know how to harness their leadership skills. They know how to get other people excited and interested about keeping their business safe online. When you can effectively lead a team, you will become far more productive and achieve more than even you thought was possible.
15. Listening and learning
You should never stop learning. This is especially true with your security strategy, since new information is constantly being uncovered by individuals in this field. Try to learn from your colleagues. Attend networking events when you can, and seek out mentors who can support you in this industry.
How To Identify Your Cyber Security Skills?
After learning about the many different types of cyber security abilities and their benefits, you might be asking: how do I acquire these skills?
The truth is, you already have some of these skills. You just need to identify and build upon them. However, many people over-complicate this process. You do not need to spend immense of money and time to become a better cybersecurity professional.
Instead, there are a few relatively quick steps you can take to identify your existing skills. For one, you could take an online assessment.
The best test you could take, by nearly any measure, is the HIGH5 test. HIGH5 takes just 20 minutes, is 100% free, and provides you with a full strengths report instead of just giving you a few cybersecurity skills.
In addition to taking HIGH5, you could also analyze your existing strengths yourself. Look for patterns where certain qualities helped you achieve success in the technology field. For example, if you find you always perform better in projects alone when compared to with others, independence could be one of your strengths.
Or, if you find projects that are centered around Adobe cause you less stress, using Adobe may be a strength. This is a significantly more lengthy process when compared the 20 minutes it takes to complete the HIGH5 test, though.
How To Improve Cyber Security Skills in The Workplace
Now that you are aware of your top cybersecurity strengths, the next step in becoming a better technology professional is building upon these strengths. Notice the recommendation is not to focus on your weaknesses.
Trying to turn your weaknesses into strengths simply does not work as well as using a strength-based approach. It takes more time, causes stress and frustration, as well as decreases your confidence.
On the other hand, those who use a strengths-based approach are often more energized and excited about their work. To use a strength-based approach, first identify your strengths.
Then, find ways to incorporate them into your daily work life. Take any chance you are given to use these abilities, and do not be afraid to take calculated risks.
For example, you can take on more leadership roles in cybersecurity algorithm design if you know this is your strength. You should also seek out advice from coworkers and clients. Getting inputs from others will allow you to understand new ways you could strengthen your existing qualities.
How To Highlight Cyber Security Skills In a Resume or in a Job Interview
Finding a job that makes you fulfilled is one of the most important parts of your career. As such, you need to make great impressions on interviewers if you want to acquire these amazing job opportunities. This is especially true with a competitive field such as cybersecurity.
Many individuals believe highlighting their skills is easy. After all, you could just list them on your resume or tell them to an interviewer. However, this is not a convincing approach. It makes you blend in with every other potential employee and the interviewer is unlikely to be impacted by your vapid claims.
Instead, you must highlight your strength claims by supporting them with facts and details. Be specific when describing your cybersecurity strengths. Which specific strengths do you have? How did you use your strengths previously? How did they benefit your prior team?
Do you have data to support these claims? Ensure you answer all these questions when giving answers to an interviewer.
The same is true with your resume. You cannot just list your strengths and expect the reader to accept that as factual. Provide specific information of how you used your strengths under your prior job descriptions. This will be much more impactful and could help the interviewer see how you will contribute to their company.
Cyber Security Skills FAQs
What are the 3 major types of cybersecurity?
Cybersecurity is one of the most popular fields within computer science. However, the field of cybersecurity can further broken down into 3 major groups. The first is network security. This involves security efforts and security analysis relating to large networks, examining network security protocols, and more.
The second is cloud security, which relates to data stored in the cloud. Cloud cybersecurity specialists analyze data changes in the cloud, too.
Finally, the last type of cybersecurity is physical, or hardware, security. It involves ensuring physical devices (such as routers or computers) are protected and in the right hands.
