Rising Demand for Cybersecurity Professionals in the Fintech Industry
There are vast opportunities for cybersecurity professionals in the growing financial technology (fintech) sector.
Fintech describes the use of technology to make financial services more efficient, accessible, and affordable in a digital world. It has been rapidly adopted by financial institutions and their customers. Individuals around the world are using advanced technology for several financial purposes, including electronic payments, mobile money transfers, and automated investing and trading.
Because they store massive amounts of data, fintech companies are big targets for cyberattacks. As such, they rely on cybersecurity professionals to protect customer data and prevent the attacks.
Fintech Industry Spotlight
Fintech companies include online banks, robo-advisory firms, peer-to-peer lending platforms, mobile payment firms, and online remittance firms.
Fintech companies must take the appropriate measures to strengthen cybersecurity. It is essential that they keep security practices up-to-date and use innovative tools, including artificial intelligence, to enhance digital security measures.
Cybersecurity professionals possess several skills that are desired by fintech companies. These skillsets can be categorized as technical, operational, and management.
- Technical skills are the knowledge of the methods and tools to secure information systems. This includes firewall installation, network configuration and management, and programming.
- Operational skills involve analytical thinking, effective communication, and the ability implement plans efficiently. A cybersecurity professional working in fintech would apply these skills when monitoring and responding to security threats.
- Management skills include the ability to manage people and processes, as well as projects and tasks. Examples of these skills within cybersecurity are developing incident response plans and managing user access control lists.
Here is a more detailed look at some of the duties of cybersecurity professionals in the fintech industry:
- Security Assessments: Conduct tests help maintain security within an organization.
- Error Detection: Efficient error detection and fixing bugs as they identify them.
- Encryption: Assist in data protection by encrypting on every product layer.
Overall, the demand for skilled cybersecurity professionals is growing. This need extends across all industries, as they seek quality candidates with the essential characteristics to be effective. In addition to the skills listed above, and several more, here are valuable soft skills of cybersecurity professionals:
- Inquisitive. Cybersecurity professionals should be curious and open-minded. They must be aware of the ever-changing digital landscape and ask important questions in order to solve problems.
- Detail-oriented. They pay attention to the specific issues related to a project.
- Flexibility and adaptability. They are motivated to continuously learn and accept change.
- Analytical. They critically think about the techniques and systems involved in cybersecurity.
- Ethical. They maintain clear standards to work in people’s best interests.
Cybersecurity Professionals in Demand
There are plenty of exciting opportunities for cybersecurity professionals. As technology changes the dynamics of many industries, they are needed to help solve the most important business and data protection challenges. The Bachelor of Science in Cybersecurity degree program at William Woods University will prepare you to contribute to building resilience, innovation, and trust at your organization.