Security Analyst | Career Path

Overview

Monitors organizational systems for security threats, analyzes security alerts, investigates breaches, and implements measures to protect data and infrastructure. Often serves as the first line of defense in a Security Operations Center (SOC).

Responsibilities

• Monitor security alerts
• investigate security breaches
• perform vulnerability assessments
• analyze security logs
• develop and implement security measures
• report on security incidents

Required Skills

• Intrusion detection
• SIEM tools (Splunk, LogRhythm)
• vulnerability scanning (Nessus, OpenVAS)
• network protocols (TCP/IP)
• OS (Windows, Linux)
• scripting (Python, Bash)
• incident response

Salary Expectations

$65,000 - $110,000 USD

Relevant Certifications

• CompTIA Security+
• Certified Cloud Security Professional (CCSP)
• Systems Security Certified Practitioner (SSCP)
• Hack The Box Certified Red Team Operator (HTB CRTO)
• Hack The Box Certified Defensive Security Analyst (HTB CDSA)

Common Career Pathway

Often entry-level cyber role, requires prior IT support, helpdesk, sysadmin, or network admin experience.

Learning Roadmap

IT Fundamentals -> Network+ -> Security+ -> SIEM/Vulnerability Tools -> Hands-on Labs -> Certifications.