Licensed to Hack

So You Want to be an Ethical Hacker? Youth Inc Gives You the Lowdown on This Emerging and Highly Lucrative Career

The suave but unkempt hair with headphones dangling around the neck and the furious typing into a rather futuristic looking computer; this is the look that most of us imagine a hacker to don. The word itself brings to a mind a cyber criminal who uses all sorts of never-seen-before gizmos for good or for evil. But did you know about ethical hacking? Contrary to popular belief and cultural portrayal, network security researchers, commonly known as ethical hackers are actually the good guys. Now ingrained with the sophistication of a corporate worker (As Barney Stinson says, “SUIT UP”), the profession stands strong for itself. ‘Ethical’ hackers are smart techies who instead of destroying the vast cyber world, protect you and huge organisations by finding and covering up loopholes in network security systems. If you’re one of the people described above, this is the field to be in. A typical network security specialist requires an affinity for numbers and an interest in logic and reasoning. He or she especially needs to have the ability to be patient as ethical hackers are required to run a number of tests to find something which may or may not even exist. Academically, a degree in computer science or information technology, combined with a wide skill set consisting of working with multiple programming languages (C, C++, PHP, JavaScript, etc.) and knowledge of operating systems such as Windows, UNIX, LINUX and Mac OS is what you need. Diplomas or extra courses directly related to computers always act as a boost for your resume.
An average day of work would be sipping on some (or lots of) coffee and testing the entire digital infrastructure of your company or firm for possible breaches and plugging them up. On the surface, this appears to be a menial task, but it gets daunting exponentially as the network expands and the digital connect of your company rises.
A career in penetration testing (another term for ethical hacking) has an immense scope with a lot of potential owing to the simple lack of quality ethical hackers have in India. According to reports, India produces just 19 per cent of the actual required number of hackers. Thus, multiple job opportunities do exist for an ethical hacker. With the growth of the Internet, a freelance ethical hacker or a network security consultancy is a million dollar idea for a chance to earn a lot of moolah. An ethical hacker can earn a starting pay package of about Rs. 2.5 lakhs per annum, which sees a positive rise with an increase in your work experience. After about five years of experience, a minimum salary of Rs. 10-12 lakhs per annum is a simple given.
So, if you were one of those awesome gadget gurus at school or college who could ruin the school’s computer lab with a click of the mouse or if you simply love everything about the IT world, stop looking and start using your special skills and talents, because an ethical hacker is what you should be.

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