According to SC Magazine, there is currently a zero percent unemployment rate in the information security industry. This information gets even more interesting if we look at trends — which are showing that this will continue. Apparently in 2019, we will have around 1.5 million open information security jobs available. For those of us who are lucky enough to enjoy bug hunting, intrusion detection and prevention, digital forensics, risk assessments, and other info-sec related stuff this news can’t come at a better time. With the industry booming with IoT, self driving cars, drones, and plenty of other technologies in the works there is a greater need to protect pretty much everything that surrounds us. So, what does it mean for an individual to become a bug hunter and how can it benefit one’s career?
Bug hunting is not just about generating additional income. That is obviously a positive side-effect that comes along with some other more important advantages. I have been hunting bugs for quite some time now, and when I joined the Cobalt platform, just over a year ago or so, I did not have any expectations except to do what I already enjoyed doing at the time. Learning new stuff and potentially meeting some of the world’s best security researchers, as that would provide me with an opportunity to share experiences and further improve my skills. What else could one ask for? Looking back on my journey , I have found myself among Cobalt’s top 10 security researchers in the world, and I can say that experience simply can’t be compared to any other throughout my career. Dynamic environment full of talented researchers, competition-based approach — where all the natural human instincts can freely come out, amazing differentiation of technologies through various programs, freedom and irreplaceable flexibility, along with the opportunity to push the borders of your capabilities, and simple enablement of full self-actualization. It is a true experience of the “learning through play” concept.
Call to arms
It seems to me that people within the info-sec industry are somehow falling into this comfortable lethargy of financial coziness, and are slowly realizing that this is the right payback moment for all the sleepless nights they have spent over their keyboards to get where they are now. I am sure most of us have been waiting for this moment — to be needed like never before — to hit the “buyer power” ceiling and be able to get compensation for our dedication over the past years or even decades. But is that it? Is that what we have been looking for over all these years? I somehow have a feeling that simply can’t be true. As Michael Scott once said “The day we stop learning is the day we die”. And what better way to keep learning and stay on top of the latest threats than to be a part of a crowdsourced community that is constantly pushing the limits of today’s threat landscape?
And no, it’s not only the technical piece that matters here of course. Working with so many different companies through the centralized platform and the ability to engage in their remediation processes enables you to learn much more. It enables you to learn about workflows, development bottlenecks, threat modeling, various infrastructure layouts, regulations, compliance, etc. etc. Platforms like Cobalt literally provide a central place where business meets true hacking spirit. Just by watching these two worlds colliding over and over again you realize that there is no other place that can give you such a holistic view and provide people with such an enjoyable learning experience.
We want you! So join thousands of other security researchers or hackers out there, get excited about security, and create a Cobalt account today! Because this industry always need more security enthusiasts.
