As security vendors, we talk a lot about how technology can help maintain our way of life in the digital age by providing the mechanisms to prevent attacks. The other two pieces of that prevention story, however, rely on people and processes.<\/p>\n
In the past there was a real shortage of people skilled in the basics of cybersecurity, which meant that cybersecurity roles weren\u2019t filled anywhere near as quickly as they were needed, or inexperienced people were hired and forced to learn on the job, both of which posed huge risks to organizations. I think this is still somewhat true today \u2014 there are more cybersecurity roles needed than there are seasoned cybersecurity professionals \u2014 but we\u2019ve made progress in solving this problem.<\/p>\n
A growing number of universities in the U.S. have added cybersecurity-related degree programs to their educational offerings.<\/p>\n
Most of these programs offer online courses, including virtual lab environments and an array of different security technologies. A few offer both bachelor\u2019s and master\u2019s programs.<\/p>\n
Courses offered teach network management and security, web security, data privacy and regulations, forensics and gathering data from multiple sensors, applied cryptography, and offensive security (pen-testing), to name a few.<\/p>\n
The eventual impact of formalized cybersecurity education, despite concerns<\/a>, should be positive in the following ways:<\/p>\n If Stan Lee has taught me anything, I know that with great power (that is, knowledge) comes great responsibility, and ultimately a choice must be made: do I use this knowledge for good or evil? Cybersecurity graduates will be faced with several job prospects, including working for cybercriminal organizations. The very fact that we\u2019ll have a larger pool of security experts means that we also risk a larger number turning to the \u201cdark side\u201d and putting on black hats. However, better access to cybersecurity education should also mean more resources for law enforcement to crack down on cyber crime and the individuals perpetrating it.<\/p>\n I prefer to think positively.<\/p>\n It\u2019s certainly a sign of progress when, in the span of 15 years, we\u2019ve come from a time when information security wasn\u2019t really taken seriously, to an age when cybersecurity is so ubiquitous as to warrant its own major within several universities. We now have so many educational institutions offering cybersecurity-related degrees that we can make a Top 10<\/a> list for online degree programs alone.<\/p>\n If you haven\u2019t already, think about enhancing your formal skills and enrolling in one of these programs, or ask your company if they\u2019ll sponsor you. Better yet, contribute to our future by letting your kids know that they can now go to college to learn how to hack.<\/p>\n Check out the Ponemon Institute\u2019s 2014 review of the best schools for cybersecurity<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n