Trying to decide between a job in cyber security vs cloud security? Read on as we discuss the difference between two to help you make the right career choice!
Cyber Security vs Cloud Security: Quick Overview
What is cyber security?
By now most people understand what cyber security is; it’s the protection of information and information systems against cyberattacks, data breaches, and unauthorized access.
Interested in learning the difference between cyber security and information security?
What is cloud security?
As you may have guessed, it’s not surprising to understand that cloud security is the process of securing the hardware and software assets within a cloud environment. However, it’s not to be confused with the cyber security requirements of the cloud service provider. I’ll discuss that further below.
What Is the Cloud?
To give you a little background, when IT gurus talk about the cloud, what they’re usually (though not always) referring to is a remotely located server setup.
These setups (aka the “cloud”) allow organizations to have access to virtual servers, operating systems, software, applications, databases, networks, and data storage from pretty much anywhere in the world.
The cloud provides end users the ability to store and even process data from the servers instead of on their own devices.
Why Do Companies Need the Cloud?
Let’s take a look at the main reasons why companies make the decision to move to the cloud:
Scalability: They no longer need to worry about application related bottlenecks. Companies can choose to grow horizontally to handle additional workloads or vertically for additional power and capabilities depending on their needs.
Flexibility: As corporate workloads grow, shrink, or change, the cloud environment has the advantage of meeting the client’s evolving demands within minutes.
Cost Savings:The largest benefit of using the cloud is the cost savings associated with not having to purchase and maintain the network infrastructure, which can be significant.
No Licensing: Because software isn’t being run on each user’s device and is simply being accessed over a remote location, companies can now purchase a service instead of a license.
Wider Accessibility: End users can work from remote locations while accessing the application and data on the cloud from anywhere. Interested in learning more about working remotely?
Enhanced Collaboration: It’s also made it easier for companies to work with partners without requiring them to have physical access to company servers.
Increased Productivity: Companies can harness the power of accessibility and collaboration efforts to increase the speed at which workloads are processed.
Ease of Use: End users aren’t burdened by the need to understand how the cloud environment works. From their perspective, it’s as simple as accessing the application or data from their own devices.
It’s not surprising then that many organizations are moving their critical applications and workloads to the cloud, but there is a downside.
Who Is Responsible for Security of The Cloud?
Responsibility for the cloud environment varies depending on the deployment model (i.e. private, community, hybrid, or public) and service type an organization chooses. No matter what solution is chosen, prior to any data being stored in the cloud, the organization’s IT security team will always be responsible for encryption of the data before it’s stored on the server.
Private cloud environments are completely owned and managed by the organization. If an organization chooses to utilize a private cloud environment, then the security of the cloud environment solely rests upon that organization.
Community cloud environments are owned by the members of the community and either share the resources to manage the environment themselves or outsource that responsibility. The same holds true for its security, either it can be shared among the members, outsourced to a third party, or both. Because it’s not truly a private environment, it’s not as secure as a private cloud, but it is more secure than a public cloud.
Public cloud environments are owned and managed by third party vendors. As such, public clouds are less secure because the client maintains no control over the data and is also forced to share resources with other users.
In a public environment, there are usually two separate parties, the Cloud Service Provider (CSP) and organization, involved in the cloud’s security. The CSP will always be responsible for the management and operation of the remote facility. This includes the physical security of the facility which houses the servers, networks, and other hardware.
After that, things get slightly complex. Depending upon the type of service (e.g. IaaS, PaaS, or SaaS) the organization is purchasing, the responsibility of the security varies. In all three scenarios the CSP is responsible for implementing security into the network, storage drives, servers, and hypervisors.
IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service): If the organization chooses IaaS, cloud security becomes the responsibility of the client who must implement security for the application, data, and everything down to the operating system, virtual machines and networks.
PaaS (Platform as a Service): If the organization choose PaaS, cloud security only includes security of the application, data, and data interfaces; everything else becomes the responsibility of the CSP.
SaaS (Software as a Service): In a SaaS solution, all security aspects of the cloud environment except for the data and data interfaces are the responsibility of the CSP.
Hybrid cloud environments are a mix of private and public cloud infrastructure depending on the corporate need. Highly sensitive applications or data requiring increased security may be run on a private cloud whereas all other data could be run in a public environment.
What are Typical Cloud Security Salaries?
Look at the typical cloud security job salary for the following positions:
Salary.com:
- Cloud security analyst averages $86k and falls between $72k and $92k
- Cloud Security engineer averages $98k and falls between $87k and $110k
ZipRecruiter:
- Cloud security analyst was unavailable
- Cloud security engineer salary averages $141k and fall between $86k and $191k
Glassdoor:
- Cloud security analyst averages $77k and fall between $74k and 180k
What are Typical Cyber Security Salaries?
Look at the typical cyber security job salary for the following positions:
PayScale:
- Cyber security analyst averages $74k and falls between $54k and $116
- Cyber security engineer averages $98k and falls between $69k and $139k
ZipRecruiter:
- Cyber security analyst averages $100k and falls between $41k and $145
- Cyber security engineer averages $120k and falls between $54k and $181
Is Cloud Security Same as Cyber Security?
No, cloud security and cyber security are not the same thing. Read further to find out why.
What’s the Difference Between Cloud Security and Cyber Security?
The essential difference between the two is that cloud security only focuses upon the security of the cloud environment; in contrast, cyber security is a holistic approach to securing data and information systems within the entire organization and not just the cloud.
The security of a cloud environment can be holistic within the confines of a private cloud environment where the enterprise has full security control. When this happens the security of the cloud is enveloped into the organization’s overall cyber security strategy.
If the cloud environment is not private, the security of the environment must be partitioned or shared between organizations, or between organizations and third-party users. As a result, cloud security isn’t fully encased by the organization’s cyber security risk management system.
Interested in learning the difference between cyber security and network security?
Cyber Security vs Cloud Security: What Is Better?
If you’re still trying to determine the best field between the two, then it really depends on the factors you’re considering.
Salary: Unfortunately, salary information was widely varied depending on the source. Using ZipRecruiter, an apples-to-apples comparison clearly shows that cloud security engineers average about $21k more than their cyber security counterpart. Although as we move towards the more experienced end, the difference becomes minimal.
Education: Cybersecurity degrees are becoming ever increasingly popular and are now being offered at many major institutions; on the flip side, you’ll be hard pressed to find a cloud security degree program; you’re better of getting a degree in cloud computing with security certifications.
Job Stability: Both fields are here to stay and won’t be going away anytime soon. You may see increased job stability in cloud security and cyber security as the need for remote data access and infrastructure will only increase.
Job Opportunity: As a result of the increased growth, cloud security and cyber security job opportunities are also expected to grow in parallel. The Bureau of Labor and Statistics estimates a 30% increase in job growth just for information security analysts alone. That doesn’t mean there aren’t plenty of cloud security positions available. A recent check of Indeed shows nearly 19,000 positions available for cloud security related positions.
Job Growth: In either field, job growth is nearly guaranteed; however, as with any job, increased competition is normal the higher you get promoted. If your aim is to become either a cloud security or cyber security director, ensure you’ve spent a minimum of 15 years providing and implementing security solutions. By then you should have sufficient knowledge to design technical solutions from the ground up!
Work Life Balance: Having a work life balance is important, but as most professionals in the security industry are keenly aware, having that balance is extremely difficult. Limited security budgets lead to limited security personnel implementing complex solutions, making long work hours very common.
Ultimately, what is better is dependent on what factors you consider to be important and your area of interest.
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