Defense analyst vs information security engineer

The differences between defense analysts and information 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 defense analyst and an information security engineer. Additionally, an information security engineer has an average salary of $97,288, which is higher than the $86,453 average annual salary of a defense analyst.

The top three skills for a defense analyst include incident response, DOD and windows. The most important skills for an information security engineer are infrastructure, incident response, and security tools.

Defense analyst vs information security engineer overview

	Defense Analyst	Information Security Engineer
Yearly salary	$86,453	$97,288
Hourly rate	$41.56	$46.77
Growth rate	32%	32%
Number of jobs	24,879	120,257
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 62%	Bachelor's Degree, 67%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	6	6

What does a defense analyst do?

A defense analyst specializes in developing programs and policies about national security and safety. They usually work for the military, government agencies, private firms, and even the Department of Defense. Their responsibilities focus on conducting extensive research, analyzing military procedures and operations, assessing threats, identifying potential risks, and studying the current laws and policies, recommending solutions to optimize processes, solve issues, or prevent problems. Moreover, through their research, a defense analyst develops conclusions that will help offices in making decisions.

What does an information security engineer do?

An information security engineer specializes in designing and developing systems to protect company and customer data from hackers or any cyber attacks. Their responsibilities revolve around coordinating with different departments to identify their needs, assess existing programs to identify any areas needing improvement, monitor network and system for any problems, and implement preventive measures for protection. Should there be any breaches, it is essential to resolve them right away and conduct an investigation to prevent it from happening again. Furthermore, it is necessary to assist employees in utilizing security systems to ensure smooth workflow.

Defense analyst vs information security engineer salary

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

	Defense Analyst	Information Security Engineer
Average salary	$86,453	$97,288
Salary range	Between $65,000 And $114,000	Between $73,000 And $129,000
Highest paying City	-	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	-	California
Best paying company	-	The Citadel
Best paying industry	-	Technology

Differences between defense analyst and information security engineer education

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

	Defense Analyst	Information Security Engineer
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 62%	Bachelor's Degree, 67%
Most common major	Business	Computer Science
Most common college	Stanford University	Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Defense analyst vs information security engineer demographics

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

	Defense Analyst	Information Security Engineer
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 76.2% Female, 23.8%	Male, 88.3% Female, 11.7%
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 defense analyst and information security engineer duties and responsibilities

Defense analyst example responsibilities.

Program and troubleshoot system micro controllers, card readers, alarm inputs/outputs, and manage device IP communication.
Utilize Wireshark to perform in depth intrusion analysis from packet capture (PCAP) files.
Conduct INFOCON assessments and collaborate with clients to provide recommendations regarding network security operations on DoD systems.
Review SourceFire events and perform analysis on events.
Use Wireshark, a network protocol analyzer to conduct deep TCP and UDP packet analysis of all network events.
Conduct firewall research and intrusion detection and determine false positives.

Information security engineer example responsibilities.

Lead the certification and accreditation efforts by implementing NIST 800-53 security controls in order to obtain FISMA compliance.
Implement a manage endpoint encryption solution utilizing TrendMicro MobileArmor to secure university workstations against sensitive data loss.
Ensure that security policies are properly implement using NIST guidelines and perform auditing of logs.
Conduct Java algorithm design reviews and resolve any design issues.
Automate manual queries and integration using WhiteHat API's with PERL and Java.
Update ACAS plugins weekly or when updates become available on the DISA provide website.

Defense analyst vs information security engineer skills

Common defense analyst skills

Incident Response, 14%
DOD, 9%
Windows, 6%
Tcp Ip, 5%
Network Security, 5%
Network Traffic, 4%

Common information security engineer skills

Infrastructure, 7%
Incident Response, 6%
Security Tools, 5%
Network Security, 4%
SIEM, 4%
NIST, 4%

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Defense Analyst vs Information Security Engineer

Updated January 8, 2025

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