IT104
Growth in Cybersecurity
Purdue University Global IT104
Introduction to Cybersecurity
As the world has become more digitalized, the need for cyber security has grown
exponentially. According to the World Economic Forum, cyber attacks in the United States
has increased by 300 percent since February. More than sixty percent of that came from
medical, utilities, and manufacturing (Jeremy Kaye). This raises the question; what can be
done to prevent these attacks? Well, that answer is simple; expose the areas of weakness to
build them better and more secure. Ethical hackers, also know as a penetration tester, do just
that. The need for ethical hackers is great. This job field actually has a significant shortage.
They will intentionally attempt to break through or “hack” the system. They provide expertise
that focus on offensive security. They also develop tools to enhance testing methods. Ethical
hackers analyze the infrastructure of web-based programs for businesses. This allows creators
to see what vulnerabilities the programs have and what they can do to make it stronger. By
doing this, businesses will have a good defense that will help protect their information and
more importantly, their customers personal information. This can include demographic
information and billing information.
To become an ethical hacker, one must have a bachelor’s or master’s degree in
cybersecurity, information technology (IT), or computer science. As reported by EC-
Council, this lets employers know that the employee has knowledge of the fundamental
technical skills in operating systems, programming language, networking tools, and
computer hardware and software. Entry level positions usually require one to four years
of experience in an information security position. More advanced positions will generally
require double the experience. It does not require any special degrees or certifications to
Growth in Cybersecurity
Purdue University Global IT104
Introduction to Cybersecurity
As the world has become more digitalized, the need for cyber security has grown
exponentially. According to the World Economic Forum, cyber attacks in the United States
has increased by 300 percent since February. More than sixty percent of that came from
medical, utilities, and manufacturing (Jeremy Kaye). This raises the question; what can be
done to prevent these attacks? Well, that answer is simple; expose the areas of weakness to
build them better and more secure. Ethical hackers, also know as a penetration tester, do just
that. The need for ethical hackers is great. This job field actually has a significant shortage.
They will intentionally attempt to break through or “hack” the system. They provide expertise
that focus on offensive security. They also develop tools to enhance testing methods. Ethical
hackers analyze the infrastructure of web-based programs for businesses. This allows creators
to see what vulnerabilities the programs have and what they can do to make it stronger. By
doing this, businesses will have a good defense that will help protect their information and
more importantly, their customers personal information. This can include demographic
information and billing information.
To become an ethical hacker, one must have a bachelor’s or master’s degree in
cybersecurity, information technology (IT), or computer science. As reported by EC-
Council, this lets employers know that the employee has knowledge of the fundamental
technical skills in operating systems, programming language, networking tools, and
computer hardware and software. Entry level positions usually require one to four years
of experience in an information security position. More advanced positions will generally
require double the experience. It does not require any special degrees or certifications to
