Cybersecurity Career Master Plan

Cybersecurity Career Master Plan

by Dr. Gerald Auger, Jaclyn “jax” Scott, Jonathan Helmus, Kim Nguyen
Released September 2021
Publisher(s): Packt Publishing
ISBN: 9781801073561

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Book description

Start your Cybersecurity career with expert advice on how to get certified, find your first job, and progress Purchase of the print or Kindle book includes a free eBook in PDF format

Key Features

  • Learn how to follow your desired career path that results in a well-paid, rewarding job in cybersecurity
  • Explore expert tips relating to career growth and certification options
  • Access informative content from a panel of experienced cybersecurity experts

Book Description

Cybersecurity is an emerging career trend and will continue to become increasingly important. Despite the lucrative pay and significant career growth opportunities, many people are unsure of how to get started.

This book is designed by leading industry experts to help you enter the world of cybersecurity with confidence, covering everything from gaining the right certification to tips and tools for finding your first job. The book starts by helping you gain a foundational understanding of cybersecurity, covering cyber law, cyber policy, and frameworks. Next, you’ll focus on how to choose the career field best suited to you from options such as security operations, penetration testing, and risk analysis. The book also guides you through the different certification options as well as the pros and cons of a formal college education versus formal certificate courses. Later, you’ll discover the importance of defining and understanding your brand. Finally, you’ll get up to speed with different career paths and learning opportunities.

By the end of this cyber book, you will have gained the knowledge you need to clearly define your career path and develop goals relating to career progression.

What you will learn

  • Gain an understanding of cybersecurity essentials, including the different frameworks and laws, and specialties
  • Find out how to land your first job in the cybersecurity industry
  • Understand the difference between college education and certificate courses
  • Build goals and timelines to encourage a work/life balance while delivering value in your job
  • Understand the different types of cybersecurity jobs available and what it means to be entry-level
  • Build affordable, practical labs to develop your technical skills
  • Discover how to set goals and maintain momentum after landing your first cybersecurity job

Who this book is for

This book is for college graduates, military veterans transitioning from active service, individuals looking to make a mid-career switch, and aspiring IT professionals. Anyone who considers cybersecurity as a potential career field but feels intimidated, overwhelmed, or unsure of where to get started will also find this book useful. No experience or cybersecurity knowledge is needed to get started.

Table of contents

  1. Cybersecurity Career Master Plan
  2. Foreword
  3. Contributors
  4. About the authors
  5. About the reviewer
  6. Preface
    1. Who this book is for
    2. What this book covers
    3. To get the most out of this book
    4. Code in Action
    5. Download the color images
    6. Conventions used
    7. Get in touch
    8. Share Your Thoughts
  7. Section 1: Getting Started with Cybersecurity
  8. Chapter 1: New Career in Cyber… "Who Dis?"
    1. Learning about the current state of the industry
      1. Cyber laws and regulations
    2. Exploring the foundations of cybersecurity
      1. Asset, vulnerability, risk, and threat
      2. What is the CIA Triad?
      3. Different cybersecurity frameworks
      4. Types of cyber attacks
    3. Understanding the pros and cons of cyber careers
      1. Flexible hours
      2. Great salaries
      3. Remote work life
      4. Cultures vary
      5. Large diversity of positions and specialties
      6. Recruiters look for you
      7. You can train yourself
    4. Summary
    5. Questions
  9. Chapter 2: Which Career Field Is Best for You?
    1. Introducing you to the cybersecurity roadmap
    2. Understanding the top prominent cybersecurity domains
      1. Risk Assessment and Offensive Security
      2. Governance and GRC
      3. Threat Intelligence – internal and external
      4. Security Operation and Incident Response
      5. Security Architecture and Cloud Security
      6. Learning through education, training, and awareness
    3. Guiding you on how to choose a career
    4. Which cybersecurity field is the best for you?
      1. Risk Assessment and Offensive Security
      2. Governance and GRC
      3. Threat Intelligence – internal and external
      4. Security Operation and Incident Response
      5. Security architecture and cloud security
      6. Learning – education, training, and awareness
      7. Career improvement opportunities
      8. Extra resources that can help you find the right career
    5. Summary
    6. Questions
  10. Section 2: Your Path into the Industry
  11. Chapter 3: Different Strokes for Different Folks
    1. Understanding cybersecurity pros and cons in several industry sectors
      1. Financial services
      2. Government (aka public sector)
      3. Healthcare
      4. Energy and manufacturing (cyber-physical systems/industrial control systems)
    2. Working in the public sector versus the private sector
    3. Introducing cloud platforms as an explosive cybersecurity opportunity growth area
    4. Understanding the typical organizational hierarchy structures of an information security office
    5. Summary
    6. Further reading
  12. Chapter 4: Exploring Certifications and College
    1. General security certifications
      1. CompTIA Security+
      2. (ISC)² Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP)
    2. Hacking the planet – diving into the big red certifications
      1. Exploring different vendors
      2. Discovering each red certification
    3. Alert! Checking out blue teaming certifications
      1. Discovering each blue certification
    4. Checking the box – auditing certifications
      1. Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA)
    5. GRC/management certifications
      1. CompTIA Project+
      2. Project Management Professional (PMP)
      3. Certified Information Security Manager (CISM)
    6. College of knowledge – discovering the benefits of a cyber degree
      1. Exploring different programs
    7. Summary
    8. Further reading
  13. Chapter 5: Getting Hands-On Experience with No Experience
    1. Technical requirements
    2. Hacking all the things
      1. Ingredients
      2. Recipe
    3. Guarding all the doors
      1. More Wireshark
    4. Blazing your own trail
      1. Conferences – more than just talks
      2. Hacking an internship
      3. Insider opportunities
    5. Looking in the mirror
    6. Summary
  14. Chapter 6: Time to Brand Yourself – Not the Burning Type
    1. Determining your brand and story
      1. Determining your passion
      2. Writing like an expert
      3. What is your why? Create a why statement!
      4. Leveraging social media like it's your personal marketing team
    2. Exploring the different social media platforms
      1. Twitter
      2. Discord
      3. Instagram
      4. LinkedIn
      5. YouTube
      6. Clubhouse
      7. Summary of the primary social media platforms
    3. Considering a blog versus a podcast
      1. Blog
      2. Podcasts
    4. Engaging your audience to grow brand awareness
    5. Summary
    6. Questions
  15. Chapter 7: How to Land a Jay-Oh-Bee!
    1. When and why to pivot
    2. Understanding the cybersecurity job market
      1. Employment platforms
      2. Searching techniques
      3. Ranking the searches
      4. More searching
    3. Preparing your résumé – tips and tricks
      1. Keep the résumé short
      2. Include only relevant and important information
      3. Sometimes, unrelated work experience is acceptable
      4. Utilize keywords
      5. Prepare several versions of the résumé
      6. Quantify and qualify your achievements
      7. Be honest
      8. Soft skills are important
      9. Less is more
      10. 6-second test
      11. Cover letter
    4. Landing an interview (and acing it)
      1. Preparing for the phone interview
      2. Preparing for the technical interview
      3. Preparing for the behavioral interview
    5. Extra resources
      1. Employment platform
      2. Résumé preparation
      3. Interview preparation
      4. Job hunting
      5. Referral services
      6. Salary guide
    6. Entry-level myth busting
    7. Summary
  16. Section 3: Now You're in; Time to Level Up!
  17. Chapter 8: Giving Back to Others and Yourself
    1. The "How-To" of public speaking
      1. Introducing different conferences
      2. Discovering topics
      3. During the talk
      4. What to expect after your talk
    2. What burnout is and how to avoid it
      1. Avoiding burnout 
    3. Indicators of a toxic environment
      1. Exclusion and gossip 
      2. Toxic leadership
      3. Recognizing lazy co-workers
      4. High turnover – employees quitting often!
      5. Lack of work/life balance
    4. Summary
    5. Further reading
  18. Chapter 9: Trusting the Process
    1. Understanding the SMART goalsetting framework
      1. Specific
      2. Measurable
      3. Achievable
      4. Relevant
      5. Time-based
    2. Learning about the mentor and mentee relationship
      1. Relationships defined
      2. Be accountable
      3. Put in the work
      4. Objective and constructive conversations
      5. Find a mentor
    3. Exploring different ways to network with impact
      1. Tip #1 – find common ground
      2. Tip #2 – it's about them, not you
      3. Tip #3 – create depth, not width
      4. Tip #4 – be smart when networking
      5. Tip #5 – taking networking virtual
      6. Tip #6 – leverage social media and brands
      7. Tip #7 – follow up after a first meet
    4. Summary
  19. Assessments
    1. Chapter 1
    2. Chapter 2
    3. Why subscribe?
  20. Other Books You May Enjoy
    1. Packt is searching for authors like you
    2. Share Your Thoughts

Product information

  • Title: Cybersecurity Career Master Plan
  • Author(s): Dr. Gerald Auger, Jaclyn “jax” Scott, Jonathan Helmus, Kim Nguyen
  • Release date: September 2021
  • Publisher(s): Packt Publishing
  • ISBN: 9781801073561