Cyber security analyst vs information assurance engineer

The differences between cyber security analysts and information assurance engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a cyber security analyst and an information assurance engineer. Additionally, an information assurance engineer has an average salary of $89,291, which is higher than the $88,422 average annual salary of a cyber security analyst.

The top three skills for a cyber security analyst include incident response, windows and SIEM. The most important skills for an information assurance engineer are RMF, DOD, and IAM.

Cyber security analyst vs information assurance engineer overview

	Cyber Security Analyst	Information Assurance Engineer
Yearly salary	$88,422	$89,291
Hourly rate	$42.51	$42.93
Growth rate	32%	32%
Number of jobs	64,387	104,421
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 61%	Bachelor's Degree, 60%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	6	6

What does a cyber security analyst do?

A cybersecurity analyst is responsible for planning and carrying out security measures to protect a company's computer networks and systems. They constantly keep tabs on threats and monitor their organization's networks for any security breaches. Their tasks involve installing computer programs or software and encryption, reporting breaches or weak spots, exploring new IT trends, educating the company's information security team on security. They also do simulate security attacks to find possible network and system vulnerabilities.

What does an information assurance engineer do?

Information assurance engineers are responsible for protecting an organization's data. They act as a team of security specialists that use their skill in securely operating and keeping data to protect the organization's most essential asset. Their main role is to guarantee the quality, security, and retrievability of the organization's information. Also, they outline security systems that make certain the integrity, confidentiality, and accessibility of data. Additionally, they secure IT infrastructure, maintain hardware and software updated, establish security standards, and monitor threats like breaches.

Cyber security analyst vs information assurance engineer salary

Cyber security analysts and information assurance engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Cyber Security Analyst	Information Assurance Engineer
Average salary	$88,422	$89,291
Salary range	Between $66,000 And $117,000	Between $67,000 And $117,000
Highest paying City	Los Angeles, CA	Santa Clara, CA
Highest paying state	Oregon	Oregon
Best paying company	Neighborly	Parsons
Best paying industry	Automotive	Professional

Differences between cyber security analyst and information assurance engineer education

There are a few differences between a cyber security analyst and an information assurance engineer in terms of educational background:

	Cyber Security Analyst	Information Assurance Engineer
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 61%	Bachelor's Degree, 60%
Most common major	Computer Information Systems	Information Technology
Most common college	California State University - Bakersfield	-

Cyber security analyst vs information assurance engineer demographics

Here are the differences between cyber security analysts' and information assurance engineers' demographics:

	Cyber Security Analyst	Information Assurance Engineer
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 78.5% Female, 21.5%	Male, 78.6% Female, 21.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 9.0% Asian, 9.6% White, 65.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 9.0% Asian, 9.6% White, 65.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between cyber security analyst and information assurance engineer duties and responsibilities

Cyber security analyst example responsibilities.

Ensure all requirements are met to successfully achieve an ATO before release.
Leverage this same site-to-site VPN technology to automate and secure transactions between FMC and its business partners.
Lead technical implementation through multiple projects to reduce the cardholder data environment and ultimately reduce the scope of PCI relate environments.
Log analysis & managing the accuracy of DLP identification to lowering/avoiding false positives and negatives.
Review and manage the security and information assurance capabilities of database applications, database structure and architecture.
Implement a manage endpoint encryption solution utilizing TrendMicro MobileArmor to secure university workstations against sensitive data loss.

Information assurance engineer example responsibilities.

Install, configure, and managing ACAS deployments to assess the current vulnerabilities and security posture for classify networks.
Implement a manage endpoint encryption solution utilizing TrendMicro MobileArmor to secure university workstations against sensitive data loss.
Review system security plans, risk assessments, and compliance with NIST minimal security controls.
Assess network against NIST SP 800-53 rev3 security controls.
Review of PowerBroker root user logs on SOX UNIX systems.
Automate regression scenarios and update existing regression suite (QTP).

Cyber security analyst vs information assurance engineer skills

Common cyber security analyst skills

Incident Response, 8%
Windows, 6%
SIEM, 5%
DOD, 5%
Linux, 4%
Security Events, 4%

Common information assurance engineer skills

RMF, 9%
DOD, 9%
IAM, 5%
Windows, 5%
ACAS, 5%
Assurance Support, 4%

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Cyber Security Analyst vs Information Assurance Engineer

Updated January 8, 2025

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