Information Security Engineers: Career Profile
Develop and oversee the implementation of information security procedures and policies. Build, maintain and upgrade security technology, such as firewalls, for the safe use of computer networks and the transmission and retrieval of information. Design and implement appropriate security controls to identify vulnerabilities and protect digital files and electronic infrastructures. Monitor and respond to computer security breaches, viruses, and intrusions, and perform forensic investigation. May oversee the assessment of information security systems.
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What Tasks Do Information Security Engineers Perform?
The core tasks performed by information security engineers include:
- Identify security system weaknesses, using penetration tests.
- Coordinate monitoring of networks or systems for security breaches or intrusions.
- Assess the quality of security controls, using performance indicators.
- Train staff on, and oversee the use of, information security standards, policies, and best practices.
- Scan networks, using vulnerability assessment tools to identify vulnerabilities.
- Develop response and recovery strategies for security breaches.
- Conduct investigations of information security breaches to identify vulnerabilities and evaluate the damage.
- Develop or install software, such as firewalls and data encryption programs, to protect sensitive information.
What Information Security Engineers Need to Know
Effective information security engineers draw on a mix of skills and domain knowledge.### Top Skills
The competencies most important for this role, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:
Core Knowledge
Other Information Security Engineers Job Titles
People in this occupation may also be known by titles such as:
- AI Security Specialist (Artificial Intelligence Security Specialist)
- Application Security Administrator (Application Security Admin)
- Application Security Engineer
- Automotive Security Engineer
- BISO (Business Information Security Officer)
- Cloud Engineer
- Cloud Security Architect
- Cloud Security Engineer
How Many Information Security Engineers Are There?
There are roughly 598,532 information security engineers working in the United States today. Employment is projected to decline by -3.8% over the projection horizon.
Salary for Information Security Engineers
| Statistic | Value |
|---|---|
| Annual median | $142,543 |
| Hourly median | $68.53 |
| 10th percentile | $86,005 |
| 25th percentile | $114,274 |
| 75th percentile | $170,812 |
| 90th percentile | $199,081 |
Wages vary widely based on experience, location, and industry.
Pay by State
| State | Annual median salary |
|---|---|
| Virgin Islands | $179,830 |
| Maryland | $141,540 |
| District of Columbia | $137,610 |
| Virginia | $132,810 |
| Delaware | $132,670 |
| Washington | $131,800 |
| California | $128,750 |
| Colorado | $119,560 |
| West Virginia | $113,030 |
| Hawaii | $112,050 |
| Arizona | $112,010 |
| Vermont | $109,220 |
| Texas | $108,170 |
| North Carolina | $106,240 |
| Massachusetts | $105,890 |
| New York | $105,210 |
| Ohio | $104,330 |
| Alabama | $104,330 |
| South Carolina | $104,330 |
| New Jersey | $103,910 |
| Iowa | $103,690 |
| Oregon | $102,940 |
| Florida | $102,750 |
| New Mexico | $102,500 |
| Pennsylvania | $102,330 |
| Michigan | $102,300 |
| Maine | $101,760 |
| Georgia | $100,950 |
| Nevada | $100,570 |
| Illinois | $100,310 |
| Kansas | $100,090 |
| Alaska | $100,040 |
| Minnesota | $99,740 |
| South Dakota | $98,550 |
| Connecticut | $97,870 |
| Rhode Island | $96,990 |
| Indiana | $96,530 |
| Idaho | $95,640 |
| Utah | $95,640 |
| Oklahoma | $95,640 |
| Kentucky | $90,380 |
| Wyoming | $90,010 |
| Nebraska | $87,920 |
| New Hampshire | $87,420 |
| Mississippi | $86,380 |
| Wisconsin | $85,290 |
| Missouri | $84,250 |
| Montana | $78,690 |
| Arkansas | $77,830 |
| Louisiana | $75,560 |
| North Dakota | $69,640 |
| Tennessee | $65,370 |
| Puerto Rico | $42,250 |
Where Information Security Engineers Earn the Most
Pay for information security engineers differ across the country. Top regions by median wage:
| Region | Median annual wage | Share of U.S. jobs | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Far Western US | $126,964 | 25.0% | 1.54 |
| Middle Atlantic | $121,117 | 18.1% | 2.97 |
| Rocky Mountains | $108,235 | 3.6% | 0.97 |
| Southwest | $107,900 | 16.0% | 1.38 |
| New England | $102,646 | 2.6% | 0.65 |
| Southeast | $101,290 | 22.4% | 1.02 |
| Great Lakes | $97,392 | 6.3% | 0.61 |
| Plains States | $89,865 | 5.8% | 1.14 |
Highest-Paying Metro Areas for Information Security Engineers
| Metro area | State | Median annual wage | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | CA | $168,070 | 15,550 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | CA | $157,380 | 18,680 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | DC | $144,040 | 35,080 |
| Charlottesville, VA | VA | $142,150 | 140 |
| Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV | MD | $139,940 | 420 |
| Lexington Park, MD | MD | $138,090 | 1,020 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | WA | $134,230 | 10,400 |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | MD | $133,680 | 9,110 |
Industry Breakdown
The bulk of information security engineers work in these industries:
| Industry | Employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 130,160 | $106,200 |
| Information | 43,000 | $126,550 |
| Finance and Insurance | 28,690 | $126,080 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | 25,660 | $127,600 |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services | 24,880 | $96,000 |
| Manufacturing | 21,020 | $102,950 |
| Educational Services | 18,100 | $79,900 |
| Wholesale Trade | 13,130 | $100,550 |
Software Information Security Engineers Use
- Cloud-based management software: Amazon Web Services AWS CloudFormation (hot technology)
- Data base user interface and query software: Amazon Web Services AWS software (hot technology)
- Expert system software: Ansible software (hot technology)
- Operating system software: Apple iOS (hot technology)
- Operating system software: Apple macOS (hot technology)
- Project management software: Atlassian Confluence (hot technology)
- Content workflow software: Atlassian JIRA (hot technology)
- Operating system software: Bash (hot technology)
- Switch or router software: Border Gateway Protocol BGP (hot technology)
- Development environment software: C (hot technology)
- Object or component oriented development software: C# (hot technology)
- Object or component oriented development software: C++ (hot technology)
What the Workplace Is Like
Daily working conditions for information security engineers reflects the following characteristics:
- Spend Time Sitting
- Indoors, Environmentally Controlled
- Telephone Conversations
- Importance of Being Exact or Accurate
Education and Training
Most information security engineers positions require a bachelor’s degree as the typical entry-level education. This career aligns with Considerable Preparation Needed (Job Zone 4), signaling the level of preparation typically expected.
Related Careers
Similar Occupations
- Security Managers (Primary-Long)
- Computer and Information Systems Managers (Supplemental)
- Security Management Specialists (Primary-Short)
- Computer Systems Analysts (Primary-Long)
- Information Security Analysts (Primary-Short)
- Computer Network Support Specialists (Primary-Long)
- Computer User Support Specialists (Supplemental)
- Computer Network Architects (Primary-Long)
Where to Study
Future information security engineers commonly pursue programs in:
Computer and Information Sciences and Support Services
5 programs across 5 majors
Sources
Data on this page comes from the following authoritative sources:
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) for employment and wage data by state and industry.
- BLS Employment Projections for total employment and growth forecasts.
- O*NET (Occupational Information Network) for skills, knowledge, tasks, work activities, work context, technology, and education-zone data.
SOC code: 15-1299.05 (Computer Occupations, All Other).
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