DEV Community: Sadia Khan

What Are The Methods Of Data Analysis?

Sadia Khan — Mon, 01 Jun 2020 18:10:31 +0000

In the age of data, the key to success understands how to identify and process the true meaning of the digital information available. Despite a large amount of data we create every day, only 0.6% is analyzed and used to discover, improve and understand it. While this may not seem like much of the digital information we have, half a percent is still full of data. Making data accessible and reachable is only the first step in gathering information and making informed decisions. One must have data analysis training from CSU to use systematic methods to use the facts.

Data Analysis Methods

Depending on the technology and business goals, one can choose from several different technology analyzers. Here’s a quick overview of each to help you understand what you can best use from your current questions, data, and scenarios:

• Text analysis:

Also known as data extraction. Text analysis uses databases or mining tools to find patterns in large databases. This means that this analysis turns raw data into business data. With the ability to find models in large databases, you can make better decisions.

• Statistical analysis:

With historical data appearing on the dashboard, the statistical analysis answers the questions

• Descriptive analysis:

Descriptive analysis is based on complete data or a sample of numerical data to obtain information such as mean and standard deviation.

• Inferential-analysis:

The analysis is taken with a sample of validated data. By analyzing this type, you can draw different conclusions by interpreting different patterns from the same data set.

• Diagnostic-analysis:

The purpose of this is to determine why something happened. If your descriptive analysis indicates that something negative or positive has occurred, you can perform a diagnostic analysis to understand the cause.

• Predictive analysis:

This predicts what is likely to happen in the future. For this type of study, development is based on historical data that is then used to generate future predictions.

• Descriptive Analysis:

As the name implies, this type of analysis involves prescribing the following steps. Uses all previous diagnostic models to identify the best steps to solve current problems. This is one of the most common forms of analysis conducted today by business people to maintain their competitive edge.

Guide for the Application of Data Analysis Methods

Based on different types of methods, you can think of the following steps. For the best data analysis, follow these steps:

Communication Needs

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Data analysis can be used in all departments for various reasons. Therefore, it is important to sit down with internal stakeholders and communicate your goals before conducting the analysis.

Submit Questions

To reach your goal and find the answers you need, you must first ask the right questions. Asking the right questions asks the whole process of getting the right answers.

Gather and Collect Data

Start collecting data from the most authentic sources. In many companies, the data is different and can be found in different places. It is recommended that you consider using the device so that you can extract data from any format and use it for analysis.

Please Provide KPI

Defining a KPI ensures accurate data measurement. KPIs are useful for both types of analysis - quantitative and qualitative; as they help you define how to measure and measure performance.

Delete Unnecessary Information

With the amount of data your business collects, it’s important to remove information that doesn’t meet your needs. If data does not help you achieve your goals or earn KPIs, consider removing them.

Develop a Plan for Sending Data

You may need to reuse the analysis. Consider creating a general management plan or data management map. This can be achieved quickly with automatic devices. You can specify the type of data analysis history you want to run and then save. After saving, you can even use this tool to determine how often the model works and automatically send the results to those who need to see them.

Integration Technology

Using technology like software automation makes data analysis transparent from the start. Automation tools provide everything you need to optimize your business processes and successfully analyze your results. The tool helps you store, convert and share data with those who need it. Businesses change immediately, so being able to use the tools to answer questions and predictions from strangers gives you an edge over your competition and another way to ensure the success of your business.

Answer Your Questions

Big data and proper analysis provide answers to important questions. Useful data and good data analysis help both internal and external stakeholders as well as customers, enabling managers as a whole to make better decisions.

Check Your Information

The numbers should not be exaggerated. Accessing data means that everyone in your company, even those without technical training, can see what's happening. Dashboards and visuals make it a reality.

Final Thoughts

Data analysis uses small businesses, retail, and even the sports industry. There is no doubt that business owners understand the importance of data and data analytics to ensure their success in increasingly competitive markets. While some companies trust or rely on data analysts, many are also beginning to see the tremendous benefits of data analytics and automation to help them in this area.

Tips to launch your career in cybersecurity

Sadia Khan — Tue, 28 Apr 2020 00:37:00 +0000

Introduction

According to cybersecurity experts, cybercrimes will likely produce $6 trillion worth of damage worldwide. Consequently, cybercrimes are still happening, and organizations have now realized that they must hire the best cybersecurity specialists to protect their data, software, and hardware from cyberattacks.

Acknowledging that today only cybersecurity experts can protect the crucial information from malicious cyberattacks, many governments, public and private sectors are now increasing their demands of hiring the best network security specialist.

With an unemployment rate of zero percent in the industry as a whole, it’s hardly surprising that the median salary of network security specialists is whooping $98,350.

Therefore, for the professionals who are interested in cybersecurity and want to have the perks that come along with this high demanding profession, if you have the right fusion of education and experience, now is the right time to start a career in this field.

Tips to Start a Career in CyberSecurity

Get Cybersecurity Training

Various cybersecurity organizations predicted that by 2021, there would be 5 million cybersecurity job vacancies worldwide. One of the main reasons for these vacancies is that professionals are lacking in aptitude, expertise, and advance education, demanded by the employers.

Therefore, if you want to stand out when applying for a cybersecurity position and jump-start your career in this most sought –after and profitable field, here is what you should do. You can get a degree in cybersecurity or you can get field-specific certifications if you have a different educational background. In addition to this, you can join several online courses along with cybersecurity training bootcamps where you can get basic to advance level training in network security. The technical skills that you will learn in cybersecurity Bootcamp will also prepare you to pass the following certification exams:

CEH — Certified Ethical Hacker
CISA — Certified Information Systems Auditor
CISM — Certified Information Security Manager
GIAC — Global Information Assurance Certification
CISSP — Certified Information Systems Security Professional
CompTIA Security+
Thus, with proper training, education, and experience in the cybersecurity field, you can easily land a job you desire.

Pick a Cyber-Security Career Path

One of the best things about cybersecurity is that you don’t have to have the prior technical knowledge to follow it.

Since it is a vast field with many interesting career paths to choose from, one can choose a particular field of interest and work towards building a career that leads to a cybersecurity position in any organization. Employers also usually recommend their employees to pick an area where their strength lies and have more skillset.

Since it is impossible to be proficient in all categories of cybersecurity filed because of its vast nature, employers recommend that one must focus on at least one particular field and become an expert in it.

Among many others following are some of the most sought after career paths that you can take in cybersecurity field:

• Computer Forensic Analyst – Assist law officers with a cyber-related crime by retrieving evidence.

• IT Security Consultant - Provides security solutions to organization

• Computer Systems Analyst – Designs information systems solution according to company needs.

• It Security Engineer - Fixes and improves computer and network security issues.

• Penetration Tester - Ethical Hackers test the security and framework and of the companies.

• IT Technician - Installs and configures computer hardware and software systems

• Database Administrator - Stores, manages, and secures the company’s data through various database apps.

Cyber Security Tool and Technologies

Anyone who is looking for a career in cybersecurity must possess the following three sets of skills:

Technical Skills: Following are some of the basic security kills that will enable you to better understand and learn the tools of cybersecurity:

● Network Defense Tactics
● Web Application Security Techniques
● Monitoring and Logging Procedures
● Networking and Security Foundations
● Access Management and Cryptography Practices

Programming and Scripting Language Skills:You should also have a better knowledge of some common programming languages such as C/C++, Java, assembly language, disassemblers, and scripting languages like PHP, Shell, Perl or Python, to have an edge over the cybersecurity field.

Operating System Skills: You also need to comprehend the management, administration, and architecture of operating systems like Windows, Mac, Android, multiple Linux Distros, etc. in addition to operations of the network load balancer and firewalls.

Thus if you have the sound knowledge and practice of all the above skills you can easily further your career towards cybersecurity.

·Practice What you have Learned

Working on different projects is an excellent way to strengthen your skills in cybersecurity. These projects will not only make your technical, programming, and troubleshooting skills strong, but they will improve your logical thinking capabilities.

Of course, the selection of these projects will depend on your work and your interest. Furthermore, you can also start practicing tools that suit your interests and upon finding errors in them, you can offer your help to their creators.

In the end, you should always be optimistic about the output of your services minus the expectation of receiving recognition or credit.

Final Thoughts

It has become an urgent necessity for every company in today’s world to hire the best security expert who can easily protect their systems and data from malicious cyber threats by providing exceptional cybersecurity solutions. Therefore, if you are talented and passionate about this field and have the skills and training, you can immediately land yourself a cybersecurity job in any sector and organizations worldwide.

Getting online cybersecurity certifications in Florida or any other US states, joining internship programs online or getting involved in field-related projects, are some of the many ways you can land your first cybersecurity position. Of course, you also need to apprise yourself with everything related to the cybersecurity industry like knowing what kind of skills are in demand by the companies and what kind of training you need to master them. This information will eventually take you to the right employer.

Lastly, keep yourself updated with the latest trends and technologies of cybersecurity by reading the latest news, follow blogs, listen to field experts podcasts, e-books, and attend webinars.

What is Azure Data Science?

Sadia Khan — Tue, 28 Apr 2020 00:25:10 +0000

In war technology, it is considered that Microsoft Azure's massive adoption is one of the reasons for this profound popularity globally. As a result, there is a growing demand for jobs in the role of data exploration. Data is the life force of all current businesses; in addition, the need for information based on data is not likely to pass away in a little while! More importantly, it is believed that Azure data scientists may easily play an important role in making important business decisions. However, IT professionals have many job opportunities in the line of Azure, specifically in data-processing. Thus, enduring capabilities on Azure Data-Scientist workstations are important recommendations to use.

An Opportunity to Become an Azure Data-Scientist

If a person is willing to be an Azure Data-Scientist, so no power will stop and nothing is unmanageable! However, one still has to initiate from the precise phase of training as well as keep an eye on the factual track to achieve the objectives. On the other hand, industries possibly will discover the sources they need to run cloud operations. As a result, investing in databases, servers, storage, and analytics would no longer burden businesses. Businesses of all sizes can use Microsoft Azure to avoid significant business support. The adoption rate of Microsoft Azure for Fortune 500 companies is almost 85.7%. This clearly demonstrates that the roles of data scientist Azure will have to dominate the new time market. This is why Azure definitely has the credibility to build a career as a data scientist.

Azure Data Science Certification

On the other hand, a career requires an Azure Data Scientist certification. However, it is perceived that certification can have significant career benefits as a data scientist. Though, it provides evidence of the Microsoft Azure application for science skills. Most importantly, by obtaining the Microsoft Azure training and gaining the credentials gives you the opportunity to find higher-paying jobs. In addition, this certification likewise delivers the necessary evidence of the assurance as well as loyalty to the continued practiced growth. All the same, this certification is considering as the accurate choice in order to step-in the successful line of business as Azure Data-Scientist. However, the name of the accreditation assessment is integrating as Microsoft Azure data technology solution design and implementation.

Reasons to Chase Azure Data-Science Work

The motivation for becoming a Microsoft Azure expert is likewise crucial to determine. Azure Data- Science uses about 120,550 customers per month. In addition, there is a great demand for Azure data scientists. After that, it is clear that growth from 2019 was 35.4%. Moreover, the regularity of work vacancies across various search forums is steadily growing in the information sciences. In addition, most IT professionals begin proper learning in relevant industry parts. Furthermore, a member of Azure Data Scientist possibly will have contact with a broad platform of Azure professionals as well as specialists.

Core Skills Required- Azure Data Science

The abilities required to obtain information about an Azure scientist are also very important when choosing a career in this field. To prepare, you need to know if the Azure area of knowledge and information matches your understanding.

Following are the core skills of it:

• The core competency constraint for the job is apparent in diagnostic assistances. The best expertise of any pro is considering as the talent to analyze data.
• The essential condition for work is openness as well as originality.
• Communication helps as an essential factor for experts since they need to elucidate the facts
• Advanced mathematical knowledge plus basic programming is crucial

Microsoft Azure Data Science Professional Salary

Azure certifications and professionals are very demanding. This means that the requirement of Azure data expert is also in great need these days. However, it is simply not a statement; some data facts regarding this report that over and above 65,550 jobs will be obtainable in the sector, which is more likely predictable to increase in the coming years. Furthermore, several studies have correspondingly indicated that the regular salary of an expert of Azure Data-Science is about 135,550 dollars. In addition, in a few years, Azure’s research salary will reach 160,550 dollars. In short, an Azure data-scientist is globally recognizing as the most up-to-date occupation in the current consequences. On the other hand, people are supposed to make sure that an individual is hard-working or else in need of a talent chain to stay in a highly competitive position.

Azure Data Science – Guide for Job Opportunities

The next most important factor in Azure’s discussions of data science policy is job openings. This employment guide exhibits you accurately anything one can assume in the upcoming line of business. Thus, the mission of Azure Data Scientist is to apply data mining and scientific hardness techniques to retrieve the statistics that can be used as the information. Additionally, individuals may catch the succeeding important elements in their job portrayal as an expert of Azure Data-Science.

• Use methods based on machine learning to train, evaluate and use AI model development model to achieve business goals.
• Use applications for natural call processing, automatic recognition, along with computing perception
• Continue through a member of the multidisciplinary group and integrate moral, administrative as well as confidentiality into the solution.
• Excellent code for the production of transport models
• Work with statistics and tests
• Work with clients in a straight line or secondarily to solve technical problems
• Work on product characteristics
• Use a wide range of machine learning tools and diagnostics to solve various high impact businesses

Final Thoughts

It is concluded that new openings in Azure data-science are very significant for all relevant industry professionals, particularly in the long run. More importantly, people need to acquire ways to understand the importance of it along with the directing power among several technologies that are emerging in 2020. After that, you will also need relevant training materials, advice, and assistance to pass the certification exams. Therefore, it is necessary to choose a suitable platform that will provide you with transparent support throughout your trip. Ultimately, you have to commit to becoming an expert and it can't be impossible for you!

What is Cyber Security Awareness Training And Why Is It So Important!

Sadia Khan — Thu, 03 Oct 2019 12:12:36 +0000

Would it be fine to ask if your business has employees? Because 98% of businesses do. Provided that this is true, cybersecurity (and cybersecurity awareness) are basic to your endurance in an industry ruled by constantly evolving the digital world. Usually, the vast majority think about expensive data fraud and network system hacks, which appear to be on the news consistently, but what they don’t know is that these attacks are not limited to just big organizations.
It's not simply the big names getting assaulted. Private companies make up almost 61 percent of all cyberattacks, which has increased from 55 percent in 2016. From the time operations halted and harm reparations, cyberattacks cost the normal little to medium business (SMB) over $2 million and have been known to close down whole endeavors — the majority of the time.

Remember that Target breach? It is still afresh in our minds not because of the interior, corporate IT carelessness but due to the getaway, the attackers found in one of Target's HVAC sellers.

It's difficult to disregard what this shows — cyber dangers are unquestionably more interlaced — and pervasive — than what meets the eye. With regard to your workers' response specifically during the occasion of a cybersecurity crisis, associations can no longer control how your employees act and react.

Organizations implement firewalls, exhaustive cybersecurity safeguard networks, and advanced IT protocols to guard themselves against cyber threats but this is not enough. You might be wondering why? What is the issue when you have firewalls and a protected network? Without cybersecurity awareness provoked in your workers, those expensive and costly frameworks aren't going to do you much good.
At last, your employees are your company's weakest connection in the cybersecurity field. It's classified as the “human factor." Criminals realize the most straightforward approach to access secure systems or take information is to target individuals who don’t pay much attention to the intrinsic details and just give away their login credentials without even realizing it.

What is Cyber Security Awareness Training

Security awareness training is a way of training your employees and making them aware of the dangers of online scams like phishing, malware attachments, ransomware, etc. Living in a digital world requires this training to be a part of every organization. Security awareness training is all about letting your employees come to face with the consequences an organization has to bear once it becomes a victim of a cyber attack.

Why Is It So Important?

Over 80% of all cyber-attacks are a result of poor client practices such as unsafe web surfing and risky computing practices, for example, careless use of USB drives and downloading attachments. The primary concern and the main motive is, successful cybersecurity is accomplished through harmony between technology implementation and support, risk management, vulnerability assessment and cybersecurity training awareness with cybersecurity issues. Your data is at stake and in order to make it secure, you need to invest in cybersecurity awareness training programs.

Cyber Security Awareness Training

Every business has employees which suggest that cybersecurity awareness is the key to their perseverance. As cyber-attacks have increased as a result of technology advancement and the extent of business data has also upsurged, most associations are lacking to cope with the aftermaths of cyberattacks.

Hackers are concentrating on organizations through their customers. They target information available online. Right, when the workers/customers non-intentionally click on the spam or phishing links, open malware attachments, enter login credentials, and other individual information thinking it is secure, the hackers bypass the security protocols.

Several different organizations are conducting security awareness training workshops. It enables you to increase the chances of detecting a cyber-attack before it is executed, realizing the minimization of the potential damage to your business.

A strong and effective cyber and information security training program will cover the following:

Aware your workers about data security threats. Highlight on the negative impacts of week data security by giving examples of associations that have been a victim of it.
Tell workers why data security is noteworthy and what job do they have to play. They should understand their focal points and how they will benefit from it.
Inform your employees about the potential decreases ineffectiveness that can be caused due to cyber attacks.
Inform and prep them on data security approaches, strategies, and policies of the company.
Adapt to an agile environment. Make a "meeting" culture in your organization.

Benefits of Cyber Security Awareness Training

The advantages of cybersecurity training cannot be counted on fingers, it’s that beneficial. The awareness training program will benefit you in the long run. Here a couple of advantages:

Prevention and security from cybersecurity threats
Protection of your company’s assets – monetary as well as digital
Saves you some good amount of money
Helps eliminate the “human factor”
Ensures that your employees are current on cybersecurity
Helps you take leads on high-profile customers

Cybersecurity training cost

With regards to considering the expense of cybersecurity awareness training, contrast the expense with forestalling cyber dangers from entering your association as opposed to the money related effect of a fruitful cyber assault. This single store on the security of your organization's future will satisfy in profits, shielding you from losing incalculable benefits to the hoodlums who may as of now be focusing on your image and your clients.

What can you do?

Apart from conducting and attending these training programs, here a few things which we can do as an individual to help us save some trouble in the future:
• Make sure to never open an email in the spam folder. Even if you feel something is fishy, you should just ignore it and get on with whatever you were doing.
• Do not submit your personal information through online forms.
• Make sure to not pay heed on fake software warnings.
• Do not open any attachments, it can be a malware.
• Install anti-virus and anti-malware programs.
• Make sure your passwords are strong and not very easy to guess.
• Make sure to back up your data regularly.

Is Web-development the Best Career Choice for 2019?

Sadia Khan — Tue, 21 May 2019 06:16:56 +0000

Whether you are an experienced web developer or wish to become one, it is important to understand that the IT industry is getting more and more competitive due to continuous advancements and developments. With a rapidly increasing number of IT professionals entering into the field, many young aspirants face the dreaded question: is becoming a web developer a sound career choice or not? The process of selection for a programmer job has itself become a mammoth task, specifically after the drastic increase in the tasks involved in coding interviews.

Before becoming a web developer, it is extremely important to make an informed decision about which type of web developer you would want to become. You can either become a full stack web developer, a front end or a back end developer.

Major Responsibilities Of Web-Developers

Usually, full stack developers are those experienced professionals who possess all the necessary skills and expertise that are required to independently operate a whole website. Full stack developers are those experts who have the capabilities to work with both front and back end development. Therefore, in order to become a skilled full stack developer, it is extremely important that you learn the basics of both, front end and back end operations, to get your skills validated.

Whereas, front-end web developers are those professionals who work on the overall appearance and visual aesthetics of a site, which is usually the end product. Basically, front-end web-developers deal with the operations concerned more directly with the final product which clients get to view on their screens and engage with.

Lastly, back-end developers are responsible for managing the data servers for a website.

Prerequisite Skills For Each Type Of Web-Developer

Usually, front-end web developers are expected to have unmatchable skills in programming languages. Therefore, if you are planning to become a front-end web developer, you need to learn various programming languages such as JavaScript, HTML as well as CSS. However, back-end web development has been observed to be one of the IT skills in great demand and most desired by IT firms. To become a back-end web developer, you are required to cover numerous skills and areas of programming. Presently, back-end programming is done in a number of languages such as JavaScript, Ruby, Java, PHP and Python.

Also, having command over different technologies such as Kubernetes, NginX, Varnish and Docker are considered as an added bonus for back end developers. Therefore, to stand out and make your mark in the industry as an experienced programmer, it is extremely important that you have command on multiple programming languages as well as technologies. To achieve this goal, experts recommend professionals to opt for an IT bootcamp if they wish to enhance and improve their existing skills.

A Smart Career Move

If experts are to be believed, presently, a career in web development is a smart choice as it is a very secure and safe option for IT professionals. There are many areas of web development that are still in the developing stage and requires trained professionals to help it grow.

Instead of working as a web developer for a particular organization, you also have the option of becoming a freelance web developer, provided that you have the necessary skills and knowledge to find new clients. If you are a quick learner and have a knack to remain up to date with current trends, then freelance web development might be a good option for you. To develop and improve your skills in web development, there are a number of online tutorials that might give you a basic idea of web programming.

If you work as a web developer and want to improve and update your skills in lesser time for getting better job offers, then you can choose the web developer bootcamp that is specially designed for experienced web developers to update their knowledge in web development. You can select any course according to your needs and budget.

Pursuing a career in the field of web development is not as simple as it seems, as it requires constant effort, hard work and undivided attention in learning different types of programming languages and becoming up to date with recent changes and development in web development.

Myths And False Notions

As a result of recent developments in technologies such as ML, data science, cloud computing and IoT, there is a wrong conception that these technologies have made web development obsolete. However, in reality, all these new technologies cannot take place in web development. Rather, they are seen to be interlinked with the skills of web development, complementing them in various uses.

The concept of web development is broad and extremely versatile. It includes the development of various games, web applications and most importantly, mobile applications. Pursuing a career in the field of web development is an excellent option for 2019 as it is constantly growing, and the demand for skilled web developers does not seem to decline shortly. Currently, skilled web-developers enjoy great demand in the job market, and you can easily make a six-figure income by working as a web developer.

It is safe to say that web development is an ideal choice for individuals who have just stepped into the IT industry. There is no doubt about the fact that web developers play a key role in the current IT industry. This is proved by the fact that there is a great demand for skilled web developers in each and every field of IT.

Final Word

Therefore, if you want to step into the field of web development, then now is the right time to do so. If you are planning to become a web developer, it is advisable to become familiar with different web developer roles. Each position has a different pay scale and requires varied skillsets. Web development is a growing field with a vast array of job opportunities.

However, it is still advisable that you first evaluate your strengths and skills before opting for a career as a front, back or full stack developer. Usually, the majority of the individuals who wish to become a web developer prefer working as a back end developer first, and then as a front developer. After gaining several years of experience as a back and front end developer, it becomes quite easy to become a full stack developer, as it requires knowledge and expertise of both; front and back end web development.

What Are the Top Cybersecurity Certifications and Why Do They Help?

Sadia Khan — Wed, 15 May 2019 06:16:00 +0000

Cyber threats are known to one of the fastest growing crimes in the world. They continue to advance in technicalities and are becoming increasingly difficult to be dealt with. This has pushed cybersecurity companies and experts on the edge for discovering suitable tools and methods of keeping threats at bay. There is also a mega opportunity for those looking to make a stunning career in the field by developing the right set of skills and expertise in order to be an ideal candidate for a job position.

There are different certifications which professionals need to have. These certifications allow a person to learn complexities associated with cybersecurity and the skills of defeating threats. Individuals can enroll in boot camp classes offered by various platforms in order to acquire cyber security certifications.

Here is an overview of the top certifications and how can they help:

CEH (Certified Ethical Hacker)

It is often said that a cybersecurity expert should be able to think like a hacker in order to defeat one. With such a skill, one can find themselves having all the malicious knowledge of causing damage that criminals usually do. This certification allows a professional hack into systems that are based on cloud computing technologies, mobile applications, or simply operating systems. It provides comprehensive knowledge of system vulnerabilities and the know-how of viruses and malware.

Besides, it allows one to have a clear understanding of security standards that most users employ in their systems. CEH professionals have experience of working in scenarios joined by other hackers where they breach networks and steal information. They know how to scrutinize and hack systems in order to protect them for future attacks. Professionals are capable of doing penetration testing which gives them a complete overview of a network or system’s security level. They work with other professionals like security managers, security offers, site administrators, and auditors. CEH certification would get you a job that pays around $130,000 a year.

CompTIA Security+

This one remains an entry-level certification for every cybersecurity professional. It requires two years of experience working in the IT industry. This certification is also not based on a particular area and is rather a set of general complexities that are beneficial to know. Certified professionals are able to understand and implement the right security policies, work on strategies in defense against attacks, perform a high level of encryption on networks and systems, learn best-in-class security practices, provide with disaster recovery and ultimately, business continuity. This certification is ideal for anyone willing to step into cybersecurity expertise. It allows for a strong foundation which remains a stepping stone for further and advanced certifications.

CISSP (Certified Information System Security Professional)

This is another widely popular certification and it is considered as a fundamental requirement for IT employees in many companies. Certified professionals have the knowledge and skills of working in different domains such as cryptography, networking, telecommunications, and access control. This is also a generic certification model which does not have a specific application. In order to get this certification, individuals are required to have 3-5 years of work experience in IT. Professionals on job roles are usually called Security Architects, earning up to $150,000 a year. It can also allow an in-house employee to seek promotion on the level of CISO (Chief Information Security Officer) where they can enjoy a salary boost as well as a rich experience of working in the environment. Security analysts, consultants, engineers, IT security managers, etc. can look to acquire this certification.

CISM (Certified Information Security Manager)

Know to be one of the best courses out there and it usually requires up to five years of industry experience to be eligible. Certified individuals have a full grasp of information security management and program development, compliance, risk management, and incident management. The difficulty level of this exam is very high and requires top-tier skills and knowledge. However, it is all worth it because such professionals get to directly take positions of CISO, earning up to $160,000 a year. IT employees working in organization security can also look to acquire this certification to increase their pay scale.

CISA (Certified Systems Auditor)

This particular certification allows you to become an expert of information auditing. It is also a direct indication of your extensive audit experience as an IT professional. You are automatically assumed as having managed weaknesses in a system and using controls at an organizational level. Just like CISM, the certification of CISA also requires five years of IT experience before one can qualify for it. Furthermore, a certified professional is also able to conduct the process of auditing information systems, protection of info assets, IT governance, etc. For positions relating to IS audit, control, regulatory, and assurance, this certification of would an integral qualification.

CSSP (Certified Cloud Security Professional)

It is true that traditional cybersecurity practices do not long belong in the cloud era. Cloud security is a different dimension where only the specific model of security would be compatible. Therefore, IT professionals acquire CSSP in order to ensure their experience and fundamental understanding of cloud systems; its operations, design, and services.

To get this certification, a person needs to have rich experiencing working in the cloud, information technology, and web security engineering. The particular certification makes one an expert of cloud data security, regulatory compliance, infrastructure security, cloud operations, cloud design concepts, etc. Systems architects and engineers, security admins, managers, and engineers as well as organization architects can apply for it. Just like CISM and CISA, CSSP also requires five years of experience, specifically in a cloud-computing dimension.

CHFI (Computer Hacking Forensic Investigator)

Just like forensics are required to assess and find clues at a crime site, cybersecurity has its own area of forensic investigation that is required to study a comprised system or network in order to assess necessary findings in working on solutions.

Cyber-attacks occur hundreds of thousands of times on a daily basis in the world. A CHFI expert is required to run investigation with respect to analyzing a breached system and taking out as much information. Besides, they are also tasked with running audits and taking measures to keep future attacks at bay. They run through everything: intellectual property, corporate usage, violations to usage policy, information, etc.

Usually, network security engineers opt for this level of certification as it is an advanced level one. It also allows a professional to collect evidence and prosecute a criminal in a court. Certified experts specialize in restoring file information that was deleted or damaged, run technical analysis and report based on the system, forensics, etc.

The potential in cybersecurity keeps growing as the offenders continue to explore other different ways and avenues to carry out their assignments in a more sophisticated manner. Cybersecurity experts around the world have joined hands in tracking their strategies and reaching to the root of every attack. Becoming a certified professional can be treated as a useful token for a fruitful prospect of your career in cybersecurity.

Which Cloud Certification is the Best Fit for You?

Sadia Khan — Fri, 26 Apr 2019 14:17:16 +0000

The selection of cloud certification depends on a variety of variables. You need to select the certification on the basis of knowledge, skills, expertise and the field in which you plan to specialize. It also depends to a great extent on your career goals and objectives. Although many large business corporations only focus on a single cloud platform to perform their cloud operations, still many companies prefer managing their data on multiple cloud platforms.

Depending on the preferences of your organization, you can select the cloud certification for yourself. Still, opting for multiple cloud certifications will expand your skill set and help you to be able to work in different cloud environments. Amazon Web Services (AWS) is one of the leading and fastest growing cloud computing platforms in the industry. It is continuously working on improving its services and application to improve user experience.

However, different cloud certification providers such as Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud Platform are also emerging rapidly and securing their share in the market, gaining a strong foothold. To learn more about the pros and cons of each platform, it is important to first know what each platform has to offer.

Amazon Web Services (AWS)

Amazon web services were first introduced in 2006, and since then it has been continuously working to improve its services including storage and data solutions. The most distinctive feature of AWS certifications is its careful attention to detail and meticulous work for significant cloud engineering posts. Through the AWS certification, you can get theoretical knowledge of the platform as well as practical training on how to work in an AWS environment and use its wide range of features and services. AWS certification is a great way to get your skills validated in the following areas:

Management of AWS services
Designing and management of applications
Effective deployment and utilization of various applications in an AWS environment

If you have just stepped into the IT industry or want to perform cloud-based operations for your organization, then through AWS certification you can get your skills validated and give confidence to your employer that you possess the required skills and knowledge to design and perform AWS based operations for your organization.

Due to its immense popularity and versatility, AWS training and certifications can provide you with various opportunities for cloud computing that might not have been accessible before.

The knowledge and skills that you get while preparing for the AWS certification exams can help to improve your skills and expertise in various parts of the cloud infrastructure.

The AWS certifications are specially designed for the following roles:

Architects
Developers Administrators
SysOps

Currently, AWS offers the following certifications catering to the needs of staff working at Associate and Professional levels. These certifications are believed to be of utmost importance for career advancement.

AWS Certified Developer – Associate
AWS Certified SysOps Administrator – Associate
AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate
AWS Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional
AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional

While evaluating and weighing the various options available, it does get somewhat challenging to make the right choice. However, to get started, professionals are suggested to go for Certified Solutions Architect. Let us take a look at this certification in detail to see what makes it an ideal choice to get started.

The AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate

The AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate certification is most suitable for those professionals who are engaged in devising and formulating distributed applications. Training of this certification primarily includes areas of AWS-based applications along with connection of customer interfaces to AWS, conceiving and constructing sound, genuine, dependable applications, network technologies as well as a hybrid deployment(inclusive of systems having on-premise data storage as well as AWS constituents).

In terms of formal assessment, the examination primarily comprises of several key areas such as data security exercises, AWS execution, and administration, devising a sound system in terms of scalability and availability(here awareness and know-how of AWS infrastructure is essential), troubleshooting and disaster-recovery plans and solutions.

The AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate certification is considered to be a pre-requisite to take up the certification of professional level. Namely, the AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional certification. The topics covered in this certification include data storage, system security, network designing, hybrid architecture, elasticity, scalability and lastly, cloud migration. As the list suggests, to qualify for this certification course, you will need practical experience in AWS of at least two years, if not more.

Microsoft Azure

To compete in the cloud war, Microsoft launched Microsoft Azure as its cloud computing platform, along with the Azure Certification. Microsoft Azure offers various kinds of features for a vast array of users, be it gamers, architects or professionals. There is every indication that its stable progress and facilitation of customers by providing end-to-end services to manage hybrid cloud environment will inevitably result in the flourishing of Azure, generating great revenues for Microsoft. It will also help Microsoft gain solid anchorage in the fiercely competitive landscape.

However, regarding certification options, the route offered by Microsoft is not as simple and straightforward as you would desire. It is slightly more complicated than it seems. A clear overview here might make your process of selection plain sailing.

Towards the end of September 2016, Microsoft Learning decided to update its Azure Architect Certification by introducing a total of five new certification routes.

As part of the MCSE path that focuses on cloud and infrastructure certification, you can apply for an MCSA: Cloud Platform Solutions Associate qualification.

CompTIA Core Certifications

With various certifications for all levels available to choose from, some of the foundational certifications offered by CompTIA for beginners are given below:

CompTIA IT Fundamentals+

CompTIA IT Fundamentals+ is considered as the best option to get started with since it provides novice trainees with sound familiarity with basics of hardware, security threats and its preventive measures, network management and installation of software as well. It is also a preferred choice in case individuals intend to change their career tracks. You need to clear a single examination to earn this certification.

CompTIA A+

The CompTIA A+ certification is considered as the ideal choice for individuals who intend to start a career at the help desk, customer support or networking operator. This certification includes areas such as troubleshooting, basics of networking, computer hardware, installation of software, security management as well as the configuration of computer operating systems.

CompTIA Network+

In case you feel confident about your skills in CompTIA A+ certification, you can skip it and proceed with the CompTIA Network+ certification.

This certification is designed for professionals having no less than nine months’ experience in networking. To qualify for this course, you must also have knowledge of topologies, networking technologies, installation, and security. The Network+ certification is easily earned by clearing a single examination.