Physical security engineer vs information assurance engineer

The differences between physical security engineers and information assurance 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 physical security engineer and an information assurance engineer. Additionally, an information assurance engineer has an average salary of $89,291, 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 an information assurance engineer are RMF, DOD, and IAM.

Physical security engineer vs information assurance engineer overview

	Physical Security Engineer	Information Assurance Engineer
Yearly salary	$84,784	$89,291
Hourly rate	$40.76	$42.93
Growth rate	32%	32%
Number of jobs	118,927	104,421
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 66%	Bachelor's Degree, 60%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	6	6

Physical security engineer vs information assurance engineer salary

Physical security engineers and information assurance engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Physical Security Engineer	Information Assurance Engineer
Average salary	$84,784	$89,291
Salary range	Between $60,000 And $118,000	Between $67,000 And $117,000
Highest paying City	-	Santa Clara, CA
Highest paying state	-	Oregon
Best paying company	-	Parsons
Best paying industry	-	Professional

Differences between physical security engineer and information assurance engineer education

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

	Physical Security Engineer	Information Assurance Engineer
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 66%	Bachelor's Degree, 60%
Most common major	Electrical Engineering	Information Technology
Most common college	California State University - Long Beach	-

Physical security engineer vs information assurance engineer demographics

Here are the differences between physical security engineers' and information assurance engineers' demographics:

	Physical Security Engineer	Information Assurance Engineer
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 90.6% Female, 9.4%	Male, 78.6% Female, 21.4%
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 information assurance engineer 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.

Information assurance engineer example responsibilities.

Install, configure, and managing ACAS deployments to assess the current vulnerabilities and security posture for classify networks.
Implement a manage endpoint encryption solution utilizing TrendMicro MobileArmor to secure university workstations against sensitive data loss.
Review system security plans, risk assessments, and compliance with NIST minimal security controls.
Assess network against NIST SP 800-53 rev3 security controls.
Review of PowerBroker root user logs on SOX UNIX systems.
Automate regression scenarios and update existing regression suite (QTP).

Physical security engineer vs information assurance engineer skills

Common physical security engineer skills

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

Common information assurance engineer skills

RMF, 9%
DOD, 9%
IAM, 5%
Windows, 5%
ACAS, 5%
Assurance Support, 4%

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Physical Security Engineer vs Information Assurance Engineer

Updated January 8, 2025

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