The Significance of Industry Consortiums and Cybersecurity Certifications

One of the most important factors in guaranteeing the success and sustainability of an organization is cybersecurity. Because cyberattacks are becoming more sophisticated, it is crucial for business leaders to safeguard their organizations. They can accomplish this by employing qualified cybersecurity experts to safeguard the assets of their business. Candidates with cybersecurity and information security certificates and relevant job experience will have a wide range of career choices. The chance to join the expanding cybersecurity sector as a security specialist is endless. from working as a penetration tester to managing cybersecurity. The choice to pursue a career in cybersecurity will pay off for many years to come.

The top certificates and other information you'll need to make the best choice are broken down here. For those starting a career in cybersecurity, this will make a great primer.

Basics Of cybersecurity

Certifications are an essential part of any career in information security. They’re also a good way for employers to identify potential critical hires for their cybersecurity positions.

Cybersecurity certifications provide numerous benefits for employees and companies. In a survey by CompTIA, employers believe that IT certifications give workers an advantage. Certification is a good indicator of a candidate’s success. With certifications, you’ll be able to stand out from the crowd and open up career options.

Obtaining advanced certifications

Most cybersecurity certifications require a minimum of several years of technology, business, and/or undergraduate college education. With the rise of online courses and MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses), there is an increasing demand for non-technical professionals to become certified.

There are specific and very generic cybersecurity certifications. You can get certified to perform a particular job, work with certain products, or be employed by a company. Broad certificates are relevant across job roles and industries and usually enhance someone’s existing career.  

Accredited organizations provide cybersecurity certifications that follow and maintain a certain level of industry-accepted standards. Certifications are valued because they are accepted by IT industry accrediting bodies and government agencies that set criteria.

Why do you need a cybersecurity certification?

The global cyber security market is forecast to expand at a compound rate of 10% a year through 2027. This means new jobs — and fierce competition for those high-paying jobs as more and more people try to get into cybersecurity. Every financial, healthcare sector, risk management, and government organization seeks certified professionals to help fill the many cybersecurity job openings.

Certification holders with a solid educational background in cybersecurity will show prospective employers you are ready for the challenge. So ask yourself: Where do you see yourself in three years? Do you want to focus on a company’s security infrastructure, or do you want to be on the front lines? Or perhaps you want to be an auditor or pen tester, ensuring current systems work as they’re supposed to. For executives, maybe you just want a proper understanding of the systems supporting your company.

Professional Certification Path

Most professional cybersecurity certifications are for those working directly in a technology role. Whether in cybersecurity or a related field like information technology or networking.

As for difficulty level, certification exams range from moderate to challenging, depending on the material and type of certificate. For example, the highly technical Certified Ethical Hacker certification requires months of study and years of cybersecurity experience. At the same time, an entry-level certificate like Microsoft’s Technology Associate Security Fundamentals might only call for a good general knowledge of computing and how programs and computer networks operate.

These certifications help round out areas of expertise, educate people about new technology and industry methods, and develop domain expertise. Most major cybersecurity certifications fall into this category.

What are the most important certifications for a cybersecurity Candidate?

Although a popular certification, the CISSP isn’t for beginners. This is because passing the exam requires extensive cybersecurity knowledge and field experience. It is intended for experienced cybersecurity administrators, managers, and executives. One key benefit of the certification is that it’s vendor-neutral, so you can get experience managing and launching security programs without being tied to a single product or platform.

As each candidate decides on which domain within cybersecurity they wish to pursue, the following certifications are recommended:

• CompTIA Sec+
• CEH – Certified Ethical Hacker
• AWS Security Specialty
• Microsoft Azure Security Engineer
• Amazon Cloud Security Architect – Highly recommended for candidates pursuing a career as a cloud security architect. This role focuses on building, designing, and installing security systems for cloud-based computing and data storage systems.
• CISSP – Certified Information Systems Security Professional (Highly recommended after the candidate has at least two years of practical experience in a cyber security role.
• SANS GIAC – The GIAC Security Expert (GSE), recently ranked the highest-value certification in the industry, is widely recognized as one of the most challenging and meaningful credentials in cybersecurity
• CISM – Certified Information Security Manager – Highly recommended if the candidate pursues a career path towards IT or SecOps management.
• CISA – Certified Information Security Auditor – Highly recommended if the candidate considers a career as an internal or external IT auditor.
• CCNA – Cisco Certified Network Associate – Recommended for all candidates to demonstrate basic knowledge of networking principles.
• CCNP – Certified Cisco Networking Professional – Highly recommended for candidates with one year of experience in networking, security operations, or cloud services.
• MCAA – Microsoft Certified Azure Architect -Microsoft Certification validates your abilities to stay current and perform in job roles for a modern digital business. Ninety-one percent of certified technical experts believe that the effort employees put into acquiring new skills contributes to their success.

Being active in industry consortiums

In addition to continuous education, candidates are encouraged to participate in various industry consortiums and user groups. For candidates new to the cybersecurity space, being active in the local consortiums helps make connections and networks with technologies and experts in the field. Many experts will speak at industry events to share their experiences, knowledge, and best practices across several disciplines with the cybersecurity place. Many vendor representatives from Microsoft, CompTIA, Citrix, Cisco Systems, F5 Networks, and IBM often speak at these events and provide sponsorship.

Job Hunting at Industry Consortiums

Public-Private Partnership

Industry consortiums are an excellent opportunity for candidates to network with other people to discover which companies are hiring. The sponsoring technology company and other prospective employers will also hold job fairs during consortium events in events. Candidates can learn firsthand what companies are looking for. As well as what positions are available, the expected salary, and the timeline for the job needing to be filled.

Top Cybersecurity Industry User Groups and Consortiums

The cybersecurity market host several industry user groups, consortium, and conferences. Many of these user groups are specific to particular domains and areas of interest within the cybersecurity consortium.

Here is a list of regional and national groups all candidates should participate in:

• ISSA: International Systems Security Association (regional and national)
• WiCYS – Woman in Cybersecurity
• WSC- Woman’s society of CyberJutsu
• ACIC – Automotive Cybersecurity Industry Consortium
• ISACA: Information Systems Audit and Control Association (regional and national)
• RSA Conference – Yearly conference – a global industry consortium.
• SANS.Org – SANS focuses on continuous certification and learning for cyber professionals.
• ISC2 – (ISC)² was founded in 1989 as the International Information System Security Certification Consortium, Inc. Our founders saw the need for standardization and certification in the cybersecurity industry. Since then, our founders and members have been shaping the information security profession.
• AISP -Association of Information Security Professionals

‍