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The differences between network security specialists and technical support specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a network security specialist, becoming a technical support specialist takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a network security specialist has an average salary of $82,206, which is higher than the $48,667 average annual salary of a technical support specialist.
The top three skills for a network security specialist include network security, incident response and IDS. The most important skills for a technical support specialist are customer service, technical support, and troubleshoot.
| Network Security Specialist | Technical Support Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $82,206 | $48,667 |
| Hourly rate | $39.52 | $23.40 |
| Growth rate | 32% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 82,646 | 157,425 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4.6 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 50% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 2 |
A Network Security Specialist is a person who oversees computer networks to find security threats or unauthorized users. Their responsibilities include: identifying compromised machines, creating briefs of security measures taken, identifying possible security risks, determining the proper procedure to address the risks, assessing software that security aid, and researching security devices to get proper information on installation, audit-related information, and disaster recovery plans.
A technical support specialist is responsible for assisting customer's and businesses' concerns and system issues by performing troubleshooting and remote solutions. These specialists must have extensive knowledge of system applications, including software and hardware database to handle complex processes that might affect the end user's experience or the business' daily operations. Technical support specialists should maintain excellent communication skills to guide the client and business on solving network problems. They must also document concerns and progress promptly for reference and quality checks.
Network security specialists and technical support specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Network Security Specialist | Technical Support Specialist | |
| Average salary | $82,206 | $48,667 |
| Salary range | Between $60,000 And $112,000 | Between $30,000 And $76,000 |
| Highest paying City | Sunnyvale, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | JPMorgan Chase & Co. | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Finance |
There are a few differences between a network security specialist and a technical support specialist in terms of educational background:
| Network Security Specialist | Technical Support Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 50% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Computer Science |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between network security specialists' and technical support specialists' demographics:
| Network Security Specialist | Technical Support Specialist | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 83.6% Female, 16.4% | Male, 75.4% Female, 24.6% |
| 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, 11.7% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.2% Asian, 11.3% White, 55.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 11% |