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RSA 2014: Do Cybersecurity Careers Have a Higher Purpose?

The need for information security specialists will only increase as breaches and cybersecurity issues become more dangerous and mainstream.

The world needs cybersecurity professionals to protect data, but analyzing networks and code in front of a computer screen all day may not seem like the most attractive career most people. 
 
Are people who think it’s boring, humdrum work missing the point? Cybersecurity experts at the 2014 RSA Conference explained that there’s a deeper meaning and purpose behind living the cyber warrior’s life.
 
Jack LeGrand, a Dell security specialist, characterized information security workers as superheroes who combat digital supervillains in cyberspace. 
 
“For the people [who] want to get out of just the virtual gaming world and get into something that is effective and can counteract some of the people, the bad super-nemeses, I think this is a great place to do that,” he said. “It’s changing. It’s not the same game everyday, so if you want to get into something that is a real challenge, it’s really effective. You can do something for your community. You can do something for your country.”  
 
And people who are attracted to the constant need for data analysis are likely interested in puzzles and logic games.
 
“For somebody who is really challenged by puzzles and trying to be a detective about how things happen and why things happen, I think that’s an awesome opportunity for someone to think about going into cybersecurity,” said Jackson Shaw, Dell’s senior director of product management.
 
The need for information security specialists will only increase as breaches and cybersecurity issues become more dangerous and mainstream.
 
“There’s going to be a real premium placed on people that understand the technology and can demonstrate their technical skills, but also have the ability to lead inside firms [and] understand the operational domain, whether it’s a government agency or a private sector organization,” said Thad Allen, Booz Allen Hamilton’s executive vice president. 
 
This is the final video in a series of five. View our related items to see the first four.