Cyber security specialist vs cyber security engineer

The differences between cyber security specialists and cyber security 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 specialist and a cyber security engineer. Additionally, a cyber security engineer has an average salary of $99,492, which is higher than the $93,395 average annual salary of a cyber security specialist.

The top three skills for a cyber security specialist include cyber security, incident response and NIST. The most important skills for a cyber security engineer are cyber security, python, and linux.

Cyber security specialist vs cyber security engineer overview

	Cyber Security Specialist	Cyber Security Engineer
Yearly salary	$93,395	$99,492
Hourly rate	$44.90	$47.83
Growth rate	32%	32%
Number of jobs	65,235	73,419
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 56%	Bachelor's Degree, 60%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	6	6

What does a cyber security specialist do?

Cybersecurity Specialists are information technology (IT) professionals who safeguard and protect the company's networks. They ensure that the network infrastructure is secure at all times. They do routine checks to see whether the infrastructure is vulnerable to attacks. Cybersecurity Specialists monitor and respond to security concerns. They launch programs or software to mitigate any attacks that the company's infrastructure may receive. They also look for ways to minimize the network infrastructure's vulnerability to risks, threats, and attacks.

What does a cyber security engineer do?

A cyber security engineer specializes in designing and establishing security measures to protect a company's network and data from hackers or cyber attacks. Their responsibilities primarily revolve around planning and implementing cyber security systems, responding to any problems or concerns, handling security breaches and emergencies, and troubleshooting to identify any issues or vulnerabilities. Moreover, a cyber security engineer may perform clerical tasks such as producing progress reports and documentation, creating instructional materials for systems, managing schedules, and coordinating with department managers, all while adhering to the company's policies and regulations.

Cyber security specialist vs cyber security engineer salary

Cyber security specialists and cyber security engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Cyber Security Specialist	Cyber Security Engineer
Average salary	$93,395	$99,492
Salary range	Between $69,000 And $125,000	Between $75,000 And $131,000
Highest paying City	Bellevue, WA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Washington	California
Best paying company	BP America Inc	Dotdash
Best paying industry	Technology	Technology

Differences between cyber security specialist and cyber security engineer education

There are a few differences between a cyber security specialist and a cyber security engineer in terms of educational background:

	Cyber Security Specialist	Cyber Security Engineer
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 56%	Bachelor's Degree, 60%
Most common major	Computer Science	Computer Science
Most common college	North Carolina State University	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Cyber security specialist vs cyber security engineer demographics

Here are the differences between cyber security specialists' and cyber security engineers' demographics:

	Cyber Security Specialist	Cyber Security Engineer
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 83.2% Female, 16.8%	Male, 83.8% Female, 16.2%
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 specialist and cyber security engineer duties and responsibilities

Cyber security specialist example responsibilities.

Manage and monitor enterprise antivirus and software firewall programs.
Implement a manage endpoint encryption solution utilizing TrendMicro MobileArmor to secure university workstations against sensitive data loss.
Scan network infrastructure for insecurities and vulnerabilities using programs such as ACAS and HBSS.
Work on implementing DISA STIGS.
Assist in using Nessus to scan local machines.
Upload audit files to ACAS in preparation for STIG scans.

Cyber security engineer example responsibilities.

Facilitate and manage weekly meetings between CyberCom, DISA and all OSD components.
Manage security patching life cycle and approve change control requests, firewall rules and DLP policies.
Manage, configure, and maintain all servers within the environments, including Cisco network routers, switches, and firewalls.
Lead security authorization efforts to obtain and maintain an authorization to operate (ATO) for customers' core financial system.
Manage efforts to consolidate customer VPN infrastructure.
Lead numerous DLP upgrades and process improvements and successfully implement application security program.

Cyber security specialist vs cyber security engineer skills

Common cyber security specialist skills

Cyber Security, 17%
Incident Response, 6%
NIST, 5%
Security Operations, 4%
Forensics, 4%
DOD, 3%

Common cyber security engineer skills

Cyber Security, 17%
Python, 5%
Linux, 4%
Architecture, 4%
NIST, 4%
Incident Response, 4%

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Cyber Security Specialist vs Cyber Security Engineer

Updated January 8, 2025

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