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Information Security Engineers in Washington

Considering working as an Information Security Engineers in Washington? Below are the key facts. All computer occupations not listed separately. Excludes “Computer and Information Systems Managers” (11-3021), “Computer Hardware Engineers” (17-2061), “Electrical and Electronics Engineers” (17-2070), “Computer Science Teachers, Postsecondary” (25-1021), “Special Effects Artists and Animators” (27-1014), “Graphic Designers” (27-1024), “Health Information Technologists and Medical Registrars” (29-9021), and “Computer, Automated Teller, and Office Machine Repairers” (49-2011).

What do Information Security Engineers Make in Washington?

For information security engineers working in Washington, wages run about $131,800 per year (or roughly $63.36/hour).Earnings range from $72,620 at the 10th percentile to $206,160 at the 90th percentile.

Wage Statistic	Annual	Hourly
10th percentile	$72,620	$34.91
25th percentile	$95,060	$45.70
Median (50th)	$131,800	$63.36
75th percentile	$169,340	$81.42
90th percentile	$206,160	$99.11

Location quotient — how concentrated this career is in Washington relative to the national average — is 1.35, meaning that information security engineers are more concentrated here than the national average.

National Wage Comparison

Nationally, information security engineers earn a median of $142,543 per year ($68.53/hour), lower than the Washington median.

Employment Outlook

Nationally, total employment in this occupation is 598,532 information security engineers nationwide. In Washington alone, approximately 13,620 people work in this role. That’s more than the typical state, which employs around 3,420 information security engineers.

Top Washington Metros for Information Security Engineers

The metro areas below employ the most information security engineers in Washington.

Metro Area	Number Employed	Annual Median Salary
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA	10,400	$134,230
Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard, WA	610	$115,770
Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA	520	$95,940
Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA	200	$106,530
Kennewick-Richland, WA	160	$98,290
Bellingham, WA	150	$107,100
Yakima, WA	90	$90,380
Mount Vernon-Anacortes, WA	50	$105,600
Walla Walla, WA	50	$103,400
Wenatchee-East Wenatchee, WA	50	$83,720

Top States for Information Security Engineers Employment

The table below shows the states where the most information security engineers work.

State	Number Employed
California	85,270
Texas	59,680
Maryland	19,940
Georgia	18,590
Florida	18,320
Pennsylvania	17,710
District of Columbia	17,210
Virginia	14,020
North Carolina	13,660
Washington	13,620
Missouri	13,180
New Jersey	12,490
Illinois	11,440
Tennessee	11,190
New York	9,860
Colorado	8,690
Michigan	7,400
Massachusetts	6,100
South Carolina	5,840
Arizona	5,740

Highest-Paying States for Information Security Engineers

These states pay the most for information security engineers.

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

Skills

The most important information security engineers skills, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:

Knowledge Areas

Key knowledge areas for this occupation, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:

Abilities

The abilities that matter most for information security engineers, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:

Daily Tasks

Common tasks 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.
• Oversee development of plans to safeguard computer files against accidental or unauthorized modification, destruction, or disclosure or to meet emergency data processing needs.
• Identify or implement solutions to information security problems.
• Develop information security standards and best practices.
• Recommend information security enhancements to management.

Work Activities

• Working with Computers
• Getting Information
• Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events
• Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge
• Analyzing Data or Information
• Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
• Making Decisions and Solving Problems
• Processing Information
• Documenting/Recording Information
• Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards
• Training and Teaching Others
• Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others

Tools & Technology

Technologies frequently used: Hot technologies: Amazon Web Services AWS CloudFormation, Amazon Web Services AWS software, Ansible software, Apple iOS, Apple macOS, Atlassian Confluence, Atlassian JIRA, Bash In-demand technologies: Amazon Web Services AWS software, Bash

What Major Will Prepare You For This Career?

Several college majors map to this occupation:

• Computer Science
• Computer Information Systems
• Information Science
• Information Technology
• Data Processing

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Related Careers

Related occupations to information security engineers include:

• Security Managers
• Computer and Information Systems Managers
• Security Management Specialists
• Computer Systems Analysts
• Information Security Analysts
• Computer Network Support Specialists

Also Known 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, Communications Security Manager (COMSEC Manager), Cyber Defense Incident Responder, Cyber Defense Infrastructure Support Specialist, Cybersecurity Architect, Cybersecurity Engineer, Cybersecurity Hardware Engineer, Cybersecurity Software Developer.

References

• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics — https://www.bls.gov/oes/
• O*NET Online — https://www.onetonline.org/
• BLS Employment Projections — https://www.bls.gov/emp/
• O*NET-SOC code: 15-1299.05