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The differences between information security officers 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 an information security officer and an information security engineer. Additionally, an information security officer has an average salary of $135,040, which is higher than the $97,288 average annual salary of an information security engineer.
The top three skills for an information security officer include risk management, risk assessments and incident response. The most important skills for an information security engineer are infrastructure, incident response, and security tools.
| Information Security Officer | Information Security Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $135,040 | $97,288 |
| Hourly rate | $64.92 | $46.77 |
| Growth rate | 32% | 32% |
| Number of jobs | 145,907 | 120,257 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 64% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
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.
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.
Information security officers and information security engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Information Security Officer | Information Security Engineer | |
| Average salary | $135,040 | $97,288 |
| Salary range | Between $95,000 And $190,000 | Between $73,000 And $129,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Twilio | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Technology |
There are a few differences between an information security officer and an information security engineer in terms of educational background:
| Information Security Officer | Information Security Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 64% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Most common major | Business | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
Here are the differences between information security officers' and information security engineers' demographics:
| Information Security Officer | Information Security Engineer | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 85.9% Female, 14.1% | 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% |