IT Security Analyst

Who is an IT Security Analyst?

Security analysts or informational security analysts are individuals who have the responsibility of safeguarding the computer networks and digital information of their organizations.

What does an IT Security Analyst do?

Their work is to safeguard the user accounts, digital files, computer networks, and other sensitive information of the organization where they work. These professionals also offer technical and administrative assistance in managing information security like enforcing, monitoring, and developing practices to secure the information from inappropriate tampering and unauthorized access.

Who can become an IT Security Analyst?

In India, any person who wishes to become a security analyst should have a bachelor’s degree in computer science.

What are the skills required?

Skills required in this profession are as follows:

• They should possess extremely good interpersonal skills for communicating and collaborating with various non-technical and technical employees at different levels of their company

• A security analyst should have strong analytical skill and exceptionally well written and verbal communication skills to communicate with different types of audiences

• They should have in-depth knowledge of various assessment methodologies, as well as, information security regulations and frameworks, which define controls for information security

• They should have the skill to showcase the ability of understanding complex and diverse business environments very fast.

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Career scope

There are plenty of job opportunities for security analysts in India, as well as, in foreign nations. As the work culture has undergone tremendous changes because of the extensive use of computer systems in the workplace today, there is less paperwork and immense improvement in the technology used.

As such, all organizations today need talented security analysts for their data security, networks, and systems. There are innumerable job openings in Indian companies for security analysts. In India, security analysts can work in the following positions:

• As security architects

• As security consultants

• As security managers

• As they go high up on the corporate ladder, a security analyst can also become a security director and eventually as the Chief Information Security Officer of their organization.

How much does a Security Analyst make?

On average, a security analyst earns around Rs 40k to 50k every month in India. Many people usually migrate to other types of job profiles after working in the capacity of security analysts for about 10 years or so.

Major recruiters

Some of the top recruiters of security analysts in India are as follows:

• IBM India Private Limited

• AFour Technologies Private Limited

• Capgemini Technology Services India Limited

• Wipro Limited

• Tata Consultancy Services

• Microsoft

• Tech Mahindra

• Amazon India Private Limited

Where to study?

People who wish to become security analysts should have a minimum of a bachelor’s degree in programming, information assurance, computer science, or any other related field. There are some employees who also prefer their candidates to have an MBA or Master of Business Administration in Information Systems.

In India, the eligibility for enrolling in an MBA program typically needs one to study for two years after a student has cleared his/her undergraduate level, as well as, constitute computer and business-related courses.

Prestigious universities offering a degree in Security Analysis

• Indian Institute of Technology

• Birla Institute of Technology, Pilani

Some of the finest colleges offering BSc in computer science courses are as follows:

• Miranda House, Delhi

• Hindu College, Delhi

• St Stephen's College, Delhi

• Kirori Mal College, Delhi

• Loyola College, Chennai

• Madras Christian College, Chennai

• Hansraj College, Delhi

• Stella Maris College, Chennai

• Women's Christian College, Chennai

Other popular options

• Department of Sciences, Christ University, Bengaluru

• Jadavpur University

• Punjab Engineering College (Deemed to be University)

• Vellore Institute of Technology

What are the books and study material available?

You can refer these books for studying Security Analysis:

• Security Analysis- by Benjamin Graham and David Dodd

• Cybersecurity for Beginners-by Raef Meeuwisse

• Applied Network Security Monitoring: Collection, Detection, and Analysis by Chris Sanders and Jason Smith

• Practical Malware Analysis: The Hands-On Guide to Dissecting Malicious Software-by Andrew Honig and Michael Sikorski

• Data-Driven Security: Analysis, Visualization and Dashboards-by Bob Rudis and Jay Jacobs

• Security Controls Evaluation, Testing, and Assessment Handbook-by Leighton Johnson

• Security Operations Center - Analyst Guide: SIEM Technology, Use Cases -by Arun E Thomas

• Security Operations Center - Analyst Guide: SIEM Technology, Use Cases- by Arun E Thomas

Interesting facts

A world-famous authority in the field of security, Bruce Schneier is the author of hundreds of articles, 13 books, academic papers, and essays. At present, he is the Chief Technology Officer at Resilient Systems.