Cyber Security and Information Security

When it comes to the term ‘Security’, people often are confused between Cyber Security and Information security. Indeed, one gets to know both the fields are involved in securing something, but they don’t know what exactly. So here, this post will clear your doubts in these two most talked yet least understood concepts. Let’s see what are the difference between cybersecurity and information security.

The difference in Cyber Security and Information Security

According to definitions, cybersecurity is defined as the security of the systems, architecture of networks, data, and any transaction that goes to and from the internet. This involves each and every minute of the uploads, downloads and even the transfer of files. As a result, cybersecurity was basically invented to make your data and online presence secure and safe. There are many malicious hackers out there that can intrude and tamper with your cyber presence.

Information security is precisely the subset of cybersecurity which focuses on the information and its safety. When it comes to information, it can be structured, semi-structured, raw, processed, defined, and stored over the net. The forms are images, audio, video or texts. Moreover, any information which is crucial for a user or an organization needs to be protected and this is the core concern of information security. It has to do nothing with the network security or the system where it is stored, although it’s relative.

Careers in the field of Cyber Security and Information Security

One can choose careers like information security analyst and cybersecurity analyst. The people specialized in either of the fields can work as a penetration tester. It talks about breaching into a system to steal or tamper information just in a way like a black hat hacker. Apart from that one can open their own consultancy and also provide training. Moreover, a cybersecurity analyst earns around 6-8 lakhs INR.

Apart from that, for some specific jobs like Application Security Engineer earns around $100,000 to $210,000 per year, that is, surprisingly, one of the highest-paid jobs in this field.

CIA triangle

While working as a professional in any of the two fields, one must know the basic principle of it. Therefore, in the field of security, it is the CIA triangle. The CIA triangle stands for confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Therefore, when we provide security, we must make sure as a professional that the information remains confidential, and its integrity is maintained. Similarly, the data should be available to the user that is authorized.

Tabular Difference:

	Cyber Security	Information Security
Secures Data?	Yes	Yes
Secures Network and architecture?	Yes	No
Broadness	Contains Information Security	A subset of Cyber Security
Highest Profession	Application Security Engineer	Chief Information Security officer
Highest paid salary	$128,000 at the start	$102,000 at the start

Courses required:

In addition, being either a cybersecurity specialist or an information security specialist is not an easy task. It requires a lot of skill, hard work and a set of examinations that need to be cleared. Here is a set of examinations that offer well-recognized certificates.

CISSP (Certified Information System Security Professional)
CEH (Certified Ethical Hacker)
Security+
CCNA (Cisco Certified Network Associate)
GSCE/GCIH/GCIA is nothing but the certifications from GIAC (Global Information Assurance Certification)

In conclusion, it’s never too late or early to begin a career and this one is indeed best for you!