Physical security engineer vs cyber security analyst

The differences between physical security engineers and cyber security analysts can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a physical security engineer and a cyber security analyst. Additionally, a cyber security analyst has an average salary of $88,422, which is higher than the $84,784 average annual salary of a physical security engineer.

The top three skills for a physical security engineer include CCTV, security design and video surveillance systems. The most important skills for a cyber security analyst are incident response, windows, and SIEM.

Physical security engineer vs cyber security analyst overview

	Physical Security Engineer	Cyber Security Analyst
Yearly salary	$84,784	$88,422
Hourly rate	$40.76	$42.51
Growth rate	32%	32%
Number of jobs	118,927	64,387
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 66%	Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	6	6

Physical security engineer vs cyber security analyst salary

Physical security engineers and cyber security analysts have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Physical Security Engineer	Cyber Security Analyst
Average salary	$84,784	$88,422
Salary range	Between $60,000 And $118,000	Between $66,000 And $117,000
Highest paying City	-	Los Angeles, CA
Highest paying state	-	Oregon
Best paying company	-	Neighborly
Best paying industry	-	Automotive

Differences between physical security engineer and cyber security analyst education

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

	Physical Security Engineer	Cyber Security Analyst
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 66%	Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Most common major	Electrical Engineering	Computer Information Systems
Most common college	California State University - Long Beach	California State University - Bakersfield

Physical security engineer vs cyber security analyst demographics

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

	Physical Security Engineer	Cyber Security Analyst
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 90.6% Female, 9.4%	Male, 78.5% Female, 21.5%
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 physical security engineer and cyber security analyst duties and responsibilities

Physical security engineer example responsibilities.

Coordinate and manage the installations of security systems with the USAO, GSA, and security installer.
Implement a manage endpoint encryption solution utilizing TrendMicro MobileArmor to secure university workstations against sensitive data loss.
Implement PKI procedures for entire division.
Create ETL processes for importing access data into SQL databases via SSIS and SQL store procedures.
Create access risk metrics and reports using SQL server reporting that goes up to a management committee.
Participate in project meetings and conference calls with facilities groups, USAO personnel, GSA, general contractors and subcontractors.

Cyber security analyst example responsibilities.

Ensure all requirements are met to successfully achieve an ATO before release.
Leverage this same site-to-site VPN technology to automate and secure transactions between FMC and its business partners.
Lead technical implementation through multiple projects to reduce the cardholder data environment and ultimately reduce the scope of PCI relate environments.
Log analysis & managing the accuracy of DLP identification to lowering/avoiding false positives and negatives.
Review and manage the security and information assurance capabilities of database applications, database structure and architecture.
Implement a manage endpoint encryption solution utilizing TrendMicro MobileArmor to secure university workstations against sensitive data loss.

Physical security engineer vs cyber security analyst skills

Common physical security engineer skills

CCTV, 36%
Security Design, 25%
Video Surveillance Systems, 23%
Scheme, 5%
Control Systems, 5%
Card Readers, 4%

Common cyber security analyst skills

Incident Response, 8%
Windows, 6%
SIEM, 5%
DOD, 5%
Linux, 4%
Security Events, 4%

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Physical Security Engineer vs Cyber Security Analyst

Updated January 8, 2025

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