Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between information security officers and analysts can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become an information security officer, becoming an analyst takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, an information security officer has an average salary of $135,040, which is higher than the $73,007 average annual salary of an analyst.
The top three skills for an information security officer include risk management, risk assessments and incident response. The most important skills for an analyst are customer service, troubleshoot, and data analysis.
| Information Security Officer | Analyst | |
| Yearly salary | $135,040 | $73,007 |
| Hourly rate | $64.92 | $35.10 |
| Growth rate | 32% | 11% |
| Number of jobs | 145,907 | 253,138 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 64% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Average age | 42 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 4 |
Information security officers are responsible for planning and implementing policies to safeguard an organization's computer network and data from different types of security breaches. Their duties typically include identifying computer network vulnerabilities, developing and executing a plan to secure and protect the network, and tracking computer network usage to ensure adherence to security policies. In addition, information security officers are also expected to conduct penetration tests to look for flaws and work closely with the IT and management departments to improve security.
Analysts are employees or individual contributors with a vast experience in a particular field that help the organization address challenges. They help the organization improve processes, policies, and other operations protocol by studying the current processes in place and determining the effectiveness of those processes. They also research industry trends and data to make sound inferences and recommendations on what the company should do to improve their numbers. Analysts recommend business solutions and often help the organization roll out these solutions. They ensure that the proposed action plans are effective and produce the desired results.
Information security officers and analysts have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Information Security Officer | Analyst | |
| Average salary | $135,040 | $73,007 |
| Salary range | Between $95,000 And $190,000 | Between $53,000 And $99,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Jersey City, NJ |
| Highest paying state | California | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Twilio | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Technology |
There are a few differences between an information security officer and an analyst in terms of educational background:
| Information Security Officer | Analyst | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 64% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between information security officers' and analysts' demographics:
| Information Security Officer | Analyst | |
| Average age | 42 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 85.9% Female, 14.1% | Male, 52.4% Female, 47.6% |
| 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, 7.4% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 8.5% Asian, 14.3% White, 65.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 12% |