Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between senior information 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 senior information security engineer and an information assurance engineer. Additionally, a senior information security engineer has an average salary of $118,795, which is higher than the $89,291 average annual salary of an information assurance engineer.
The top three skills for a senior information security engineer include incident response, risk management and windows. The most important skills for an information assurance engineer are RMF, DOD, and IAM.
| Senior Information Security Engineer | Information Assurance Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $118,795 | $89,291 |
| Hourly rate | $57.11 | $42.93 |
| Growth rate | 32% | 32% |
| Number of jobs | 119,962 | 104,421 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 60% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
Senior information security engineers are information technology (IT) professionals who are responsible for managing the IT security of an organization. These engineers are required to participate in the planning, design, and installation of security systems that support the security policies of the organization. They must provide security expertise to the organization by conducting training for corporate security education and awareness programs. Senior information security engineers must also review reports on event anomalies while investigating security violations.
Information assurance engineers are responsible for protecting an organization's data. They act as a team of security specialists that use their skill in securely operating and keeping data to protect the organization's most essential asset. Their main role is to guarantee the quality, security, and retrievability of the organization's information. Also, they outline security systems that make certain the integrity, confidentiality, and accessibility of data. Additionally, they secure IT infrastructure, maintain hardware and software updated, establish security standards, and monitor threats like breaches.
Senior information security engineers and information assurance engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Information Security Engineer | Information Assurance Engineer | |
| Average salary | $118,795 | $89,291 |
| Salary range | Between $90,000 And $155,000 | Between $67,000 And $117,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Santa Clara, CA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | Oregon |
| Best paying company | Apple | Parsons |
| Best paying industry | Hospitality | Professional |
There are a few differences between a senior information security engineer and an information assurance engineer in terms of educational background:
| Senior Information Security Engineer | Information Assurance Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 60% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Information Technology |
| Most common college | Stanford University | - |
Here are the differences between senior information security engineers' and information assurance engineers' demographics:
| Senior Information Security Engineer | Information Assurance Engineer | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 87.4% Female, 12.6% | 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% |