Guidance

[Ayazm]

Good day,

I want to switch my career to cyber security professional. The issue of course is that i do not have any past experience in the field. I'm doing a few online courses but not sure how much they would help with the job. If possible would you be able to guide me through a process of what can be done in order to start being acknowledged by the industry? Would continuing courses help eventually or there is some exam I can study for and write which would give some kind of recognition. Your help would be very appreciated.

Thanks,

[rslade]

> Ayazm (Viewer) posted a new topic in Career on 02-19-2019 09:19 PM in the

> there is some exam I can study for and write which would give
> some kind of recognition.

Funny you should ask that here, of all places ...

====================== (quote inserted randomly by Pegasus Mailer)
rslade@vcn.bc.ca slade@victoria.tc.ca rslade@computercrime.org
I will be so brief I have already finished. - Salvador Dali
victoria.tc.ca/techrev/rms.htm http://twitter.com/rslade
http://blogs.securiteam.com/index.php/archives/author/p1/
https://is.gd/RotlWB

[gert]

Hi Ayazm,

I don't want to ruin your enthusiasm but I think the best tool, and mostly recognized, is experience in the field. IT-security often touches a wide range of items, which is hard to capture in a single training. Which is also why f.e. the CISSP certification requires a number of years working experience.

You could look at more specific certifications and trainings that focus on a single topic. 

OSCP might be something as well, as I think anyone that completes their 24 hour exam has proven a certain capacity for the job but even then, pentesting also requires a wide range of knowledge.

[dharvey32]

@Ayazm,

My recommendation for you is try and get a job as a helpdesk specialist and work your way up from there. In my experience, the best security professional is the one with the full breadth of knowledge regarding operating systems, hardware/software, databases, networking, vulnerabilities, etc., and all the little intricacies that make them function-things you don't really learn by reading books. As opposed to 10 years ago, today's brand of helpdesk specialists get a wide range of experiences, instead of just being focused one or 2 tasks.  I don't know what your age is and how much you are looking to fast-track this process but if you want to do this the right way I would recommend following my process. The last thing you would want to do is to read a book, study weeks for a test, pass the test and get a job, then suck at the job and fail.
Hope this helps

[Ayazm]

Thank you very much for your input.

[Ayazm]

Thank your very much for your input on this. As you mentioned reading books and passing the exam without having any kind of hands on training is very difficult. My goal is to get a job and learn as much as possible doing hands on but again most jobs require some kind of diploma or certification. I will get some more knowledge around cyber security and see if I get lucky and start somewhere at the bottom of the hill and make my way up. I have heard some companies do hire without any past experience not sure how true that is however thanks again for your reply.

[CISOScott]

@dharvey32 Great advice! Helpdesk experience also teaches you about customer service. Also gain as much experience as you can. Even if you have to do it yourself. I set up a lab environment and practiced all kinds of setup and hacking to gain the experience I couldn't gain at work.