Cyber Security Salary Guide

  

It is well known that employees in the IT industry have, on average, significantly earn higher salaries than most other professions. According to CompTIA's Cyberstates Technology tech economy guide, the median wage in the IT industry is twice the national average in the United States. This applies to all IT sectors, including the cybersecurity sector. But how much do cybersecurity specialists make?

Cybersecurity is a broad term – there is a wide range of jobs available in this technology sector. From pentester to the information security analyst to security engineer to the chief information security officer, each profile has a different salary range. How much you earn personally also depends on various factors, such as your education and level of experience, the type of business your organization is in, its size, location, etc.

All the average salaries you will see in this article are taken from Glassdoor, a leading website that reviews organizations and employers, Payscale, an organization that research about compensation of employees, and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

Factors of Salary in Cybersecurity Sector: 

• Education and experience: 

Education is an integral part of a cybersecurity professional resume, which affects the cybersecurity professional's earnings.

As they handle data loss prevention and general data protection, security incidents, risk assessment, and countering digital threats, the role of cybersecurity experts is important to businesses.

You need to have a bachelor degree to apply for entry into the IT security industry, and you do not have to think too much about getting a master's degree. Only 23% of tech-workers with a master's degree or higher believe that their advanced degree helps them earn a higher salary, according to hired.com Certifications too plays a key role in getting good salary in cybersecurity. Online CISA Certification is one among those certificates that helps professionals to achieve their dream job in cybersecurity. 

• Type of industry:

While the IT industry is the focus of this article, an IT professional can work in various other industries. Computer security is important, no matter what is the work or business of any company?

The highest average salaries for IT and cybersecurity specialists can be found in communications, pharma, government (military and homeland security), advertising, aerospace and defence, medical, VAR integration etc, according to the Statista. The same IT position in the industry will likely generate more revenue than others.

• Business size and revenue: 

The estimated average salary also depends on the size of the company and its profitability. In theory, a good option is to find work in a relatively small company (less than 100 or, better yet, fewer than 50 employees) with significant income. Your cybersecurity salary is likely above the industry average.

The problem with large companies is that they have hundreds, even thousands, or tens of thousands of employees worldwide. This results in offering lower starting salaries than their competitors, who are smaller in numbers. 

• Business location: 

In a time of work from home and social distancing, the IT industry has an edge. Most tech employees can work from home without any problems as long as their internet connection is stable. Remote IT is turning into a new normal with time. 

Tech jobs in Washington, D.C. not getting the same pay as the same type of work in San Francisco, California. In fact, because of Silicon Valley, perhaps the world's technology centre, the median salary is the highest in the San Francisco area, according to the findings by hired.com.

In 2019, the median salary of a tech worker is $145,000 in San Francisco, $138,000 in Seattle, Washington, $133,000 in New York, New York, $117,000 in Denver, Colorado, and $117,000 in San Diego "only" 113,000 US dollars. 

The average salary for Cybersecurity Expert:

After all, your salary also depends on your cybersecurity position. Here are the average cybersecurity salaries for some of the most common positions to help you understand how much not only cybersecurity professionals but other cybersecurity positions will do:

• Computer Forensics Analyst: 

While this position sounds great and is a dynamic work environment, it is one of the lowest salaries on our list. A computer forensics analyst earns a median annual salary of $57,755, according to Glassdoor and $73,892, according to Payscale.

• Cybersecurity Specialist: 

The position of cybersecurity specialist is considered the first. This position is also called an IT Security specialist or computer security specialist. For these jobs, the median salary in the United States ranges from $69,123 according to Glassdoor and $76,336 per year, according to Payscale.

•Information Security Analyst: 

Information security analysts typically earn higher than a cybersecurity specialist's salary. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics stats an information security analyst earns an average of $99,730 per year or $47.95 per hour. For the same position, Glassdoor lists a median annual salary of $76,410, based on 4.595 anonymous salary requests from information security analysts in the United States.

• Penetration Tester (Pentester):

Payscale states that pentester have an estimated salary of between $52,000 and $137,000. This is in line with Glassdoor's finding that the median retirement salary is $69,123 per year.

• Security Engineer: 

According to Glassdoor, cyber and data security engineers earn an average of $99,834 a year. These figures are similar to Payscale, which puts the median annual salary for a security engineer at $91,598.

Understand that a network security engineer titles seem to earn less than the above - an average of $79,686 per year, according to the Glassdoor.

• Security Architect: 

With the greater skills and long responsibilities list, a security architect earns a salary in six digits. Glassdoor puts the median base salary for a security architect at $106,362, while Payscale says a bit more: $124,051.

• Chief Information Security Officer (CISO): 

As the chief information security officer (CISO) is a senior executive, it is not surprising that the median base salary is $179,763, listed by Glassdoor.

Summing up: 

This is indeed a complicated question that how much will cybersecurity specialists earn? The average median salary for a cybersecurity job depends on numerous factors. It all depends on education level and experiences an employee has.  When looking at large and well-known companies, keep in mind that your starting salary will be relatively low before you move up. Not every corner of the United States offers the same average income, which is to keep in mind.

After all, the cybersecurity specialist position is only a point of starting. From there, you will outline your career path based on your preferences and skills. When you're working hard, undergo CISA Certification for security training to upskill and prove yourself that you're a great asset to your business, there's no reason not to ask for the six-figure salary. 

If you have a query related to the salary of the cybersecurity sector or if you are looking forward to any cybersecurity certification, then contact us today!