Soft And Hard Skills That Aspiring Cybersecurity Professionals Will Need To Excel In 2022

What is the main aim of cybercriminals? What is it that we are trying to protect? – The answer is Data.

Cyberattacks or ‘Hacks’ acquire sensitive information like – names, passwords, and financial records – which are later used for unethical purposes. Since Data has become the new gold, the emphasis on Cybersecurity and protecting Data from internal and external threats have increased manifold. According to a report, 25 percent of ransomware attacks in India in 2022 are likely to come from insiders, a marked increase from 2 percent in 2021.

Being a Cybersecurity expert is not that easy. Most often the portrayal of Cybersecurity experts in movies is exaggerated and far from reality. However, in real life, it is a commendable job that requires you to have a specific set of skills, knowledge of relevant tools, technologies, and practical learning experience to protect the most invaluable asset of any organization – The Data. According to Kaspersky, India is among the top five targets for cyberattacks in the APAC region, particularly security breaches that involve cyber espionage.

Becoming a Cybersecurity expert today can be one of the wisest decisions in one’s career. With increased threats and amplified security breaches, the need for reliable, skilled, competent professionals is rather very high.

What Are A Few Soft Skills An Aspiring Cybersecurity Professional Needs To Master?

That’s right! Being a Cybersecurity professional is not all about sitting in front of the system and keeping a tab on the systems employed by the organization and reporting issues to their management. Certain specific soft skills are necessary to make it to the top of the ladder.

1. Excellent communication skills to communicate effectively with the management and client alike. 

2. Exceptional presentation skills to convince the respective stakeholders of the threat at hand and the necessary possible actions to be taken to avoid further complications

3. The ability to cleanly and clearly articulate complex concepts

4. The unending patience and determination to zero in on the problem and whip out a solution for the same.

What Are A Few Hard Skills An Aspiring Cybersecurity Professional Needs To Master?

Hard skills, on the other hand, are acquired through determination, consistent hard work, and repeated practice. These are crucial skills that will be the guiding beacon of your long successful journey.

1. Penetration Testing: As companies continue to go digital, cyber threats are increasing proportionally. And here is precisely where Penetrating Testers become invaluable. Penetration Testers employ their innovativeness and abundant knowledge of hacking techniques to lawfully test an organization’s security systems and search for various weaknesses. They will repeatedly try to break into the system, just as any hostile hacker would do. They then report their findings to the organization enabling them to fix these vulnerabilities before anyone else could exploit the same.

2. Application Security: The most exclusive feature of a smartphone is the vast number of applications it offers. With the increased number of applications and smartphones, hackers are bound to try and find their way into stealing information from these applications. An Application Security Expert’s function is to secure data and applications from unauthorized access or credentials. Thus, organizations are always looking for trained Cybersecurity professionals who can protect their applications.

3. Network Security: Most organizations have their own private networks where sensitive information or data are constantly being shared. Hackers often try to attack these networks to try and steal the available data. Therefore, it is the responsibility of Network Engineers, Administrators, and Designers to create and implement secure network architectures to protect against said cyberattacks.
 
4. Cloud Security: With the world actively and happily embracing hybrid work culture, the popularity and dependency on Cloud Computing technologies have increased. However, Cloud technologies also bring new risks and threats to the information and data stored in them. Resulting in a whole new pool of opportunities for Cybersecurity professionals; they are solely responsible for protecting and fending any and all kinds of attacks on these Cloud storage facilities.

Did you know that the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) reported more than 2.12 lakh Cybersecurity incidents this year (till February 2022)? 

Technology not only gives us the power to achieve the unthinkable, but it also sometimes bestows upon us the need to do the undeniable. Cyberattacks are one of those unnecessary evils that exist only to make our comforts seem like a curse in this technologically advanced era. However, with proper precautions and necessary training, one can always become skilled in preventing these attacks and protecting invaluable data.

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