Cyber Security Salary in India: For Freshers & Experienced [2023]

Summary:

In this article, you will learn about cyber security salaries in India.

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Wondering what is the range of Cyber Security salary in India?

Cyber security career in India is witnessing new heights as the days pass by and with the growing popularity and the internet becoming a necessity, the field is only expected to go up the graph. However, the field is still experiencing a labour shortage which makes entry-level cyber security jobs salary much better than the majority of the tech field jobs. 

With the increasing adoption of the Internet and online practices in every sphere, Cyber Security has generated a continuously growing concern for all businesses. One statistic reveals that in 2022, one new organization will fall victim to ransomware every 11 seconds. A report from KSN (Kaspersky Security Network) shows that India has experienced a 37% rise in cyber-attacks in the first quarter of 2020. Authorized institutions started to provide the best courses in cybersecurity in India. 

According to a report from PricewaterhouseCoopers, India’s cybersecurity market is predicted to grow from USD 1.97 billion in 2019 to USD 3.05 billion by 2022, with a rate one and a half times than the global rate.

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We are sure, this must-have sparked a will to become a cyber security expert within you! Let’s take a look at who exactly is cyber security and what is a typical cyber security engineer salary in India?

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What is Cyber Security?

While physical security protects facilities and objects in the real world, cybersecurity protects information systems and data. Cybersecurity is the practice of safeguarding servers, computers, electronic systems, networks, mobile devices, and data from malicious electronic attacks. It’s aimed to protect assets from malicious codes and logins and is applied in a broad range of contexts, from mobile computing to businesses.

Cybersecurity ensures and maintains the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of information and data. It protects computers, computer systems, mobile devices, networks, applications, and data against cyberattacks. These attacks interrupt usual business actions, terminate information, and blackmail or ransom.

Cybersecurity uses multiple layers to cover the chosen entry points. For example, connected networks, data, and physical devices must be covered. The growing need for cybersecurity professionals leads to an increasing cyber security salary.

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Need for Cybersecurity:

Various types of attacks in cybersecurity must be curbed. Most individuals can access multiple electronic gadgets; the default one is smartphones. The number of devices surpasses the number of people. So, it increases the targets for attackers.

The cyber threat may lead to identity theft, blackmail, the loss of years of memories in digital media, and monetary loss because your devices become useless. The growing need for cybersecurity specialists suggests that cyber security salary per month in India is admirable to deserving candidates.

Attacks on large-scale organizations are more exposed; however, small companies are also targeted. Data breaches in large-scale corporations render millions of personal records and this can lead to more attacks. For example, attacks on hospitals might lead to fatalities because more equipment is connected to the internet. Similar is the case with power plants, wherein the outage show rippling effects over multiple industries. Society is completely dependent on a flawless functioning and secure infrastructure. So, it is worth offering a decent cyber security salary to skilled cybersecurity professionals.

Cybersecurity is vital in any organization, irrespective of its size. The information is transforming digital through wireless communication networks owing to cutting-edge technology and software across different sectors like educational institutions, government agencies, hospitals, etc.

One of the prime functions of cybersecurity is to secure an organization’s sensitive data that can damage its reputation. Cybersecurity deters cyber attackers who target small and large companies and access their essential information and documents. Leading companies are willing to pay high cyber security salary in India to experienced and skilled candidates.

Common Categories of Cyber Security

Cybersecurity can be divided into the following common categories.

Types of Cyber Security     

• Application Security – Focuses on finding and fixing vulnerabilities in application codes to make apps more secure.
• Network Security – Aims to prevent and protect corporate networks from intrusions such as malware or targeted attackers.
• Operational Security – Includes the processes and decisions for protecting and managing data assets. It encompasses user permissions for network access and the procedures that dictate the way data should be stored and shared safely.
• Information Security – Safeguards data integrity and privacy during its storage and transmission from one machine to another.
• End-User Education – Anyone can unintentionally introduce a cybersecurity threat such as a virus by failing to follow safe security practices. Thus, educating end-users to delete suspicious emails, refrain from plugging in unidentified USB drives, and other essential lessons are vital for protecting corporate security.
• Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity – It defines how an organization responds to a cybersecurity incident that causes data loss or service outage and how it will restore its information and operations to return to the same operating capacity as before the event. Business continuity is the plan a company will rely on while operating without specific resources.
• Endpoint Security –Remote access is a vital component of business models and workflows. But endpoint security guarantees that it doesn’t turn into a liability. Endpoint devices are easier to target, specifically if the users are not warned of the risks and essential cautionary steps.
• Identity Management –The process of issuing rights and system access must be well-documented and closely monitored. All users’ access levels must be monitored and logged through 2-step security measures to avoid impersonator access.
• Infrastructure Security –It entails the physical facets of computer infrastructure. For example, it includes a controlled power delivery system, strong physical security, fire extinguishers, etc. Cybersecurity professionals skilled in infrastructure security can earn higher cyber security salary in India.

Read: Career in Cyber Security

Types of Cyber Security Threats

Cybersecurity faces 3-fold threats

Cybercrime – Consists of groups or single actors targeting systems to cause disruption.

Cyber-attack – Involves politically motivated information gathering.

Cyber-terrorism – Aims to cause panic or fear by undermining electronic systems.

Following are some of the methods used to compromise cybersecurity.

Malware – Malware is the most common type of cyber-attack, in which a hacker uses malicious software to disrupt a legitimate user’s computer. Malware is often spread through a legitimate-looking download or an unsolicited email attachment. They are intended to make money or can also have a political motivation. There are various types of malware, such as Trojan, virus, ransomware, spyware, botnets, and adware.

Phishing – In phishing, a cybercriminal sends people emails that seem to be from a legitimate company to ask for sensitive information such as credit card details or personal data. It is then used to dupe them for financial gain.

SQL Injection – In this type of cyber-attack, a cybercriminal exploits a vulnerability in data-driven applications to insert malicious code into a database using a malicious SQL statement for taking control of the database to steal data.

Denial-of-service attack – In this type of attack, a cybercriminal prevents a computer from fulfilling legitimate requests. It overwhelms the networks and servers with traffic and renders the system unusable. It prevents an organization from managing its vital functions.

Man-in-the-middle attack – This type of attack involves a cybercriminal intercepting communication between two individuals for stealing data.

Attack on data availability: Attacks in data availability guarantee that both you and the end-user can’t access your data. It may be entirely malicious and simply an attempt to disrupt business fully or perhaps ask for a fee to give up access. Many organizations have paid cyber attackers to regain access to their data. You can earn a great cyber security salary per month in India if you can mitigate an attack on data availability.

Attack on data integrity -Integrity can be of data or organization. For example, the data integrity is compromised if a scoundrel student hacks the school’s database and modifies all the grades. The organization’s integrity is severely compromised if a cyber attacker obtains access to an organization’s database and all the records are leaked online. This is more perceptible to people whose data is stored in the organization’s system. A justifiable cyber security analyst salary is guaranteed if you can mitigate such cyberattacks.

Attack on Data Confidentiality -Personal information must be private. If anybody, either internally or externally obtains illicit access to your information, its confidentiality is compromised. This usually happens on an individual level, at homes and workplaces.

Mitigation of Cybersecurity Attacks:

Understanding various types of data breaches helps implement the required protective measures. The following steps help mitigate cybersecurity attacks.

1. VA and Pen-tests:

Organizations must plan regular penetration tests and vulnerability assessments to check infrastructure security. Any loopholes must be identified and patched.

2. DR & BCP:

Every organization must employ business continuity plans (BCP) and disaster recovery (DR). It must contain switch-over dry runs to guarantee that the workforces are always ready to efficiently start the security operations from the primary site to the DR site. Also, it should be ensured that the organization would begin working instantly. Professionals skilled at mitigating these types of cyberattacks can have a decent cyber security salary per month.

3. User Education and Training:

Employees must be educated on vigilance’s significance in the context of cybersecurity. Social engineering and phishing must be properly illustrated.

4. Cloud Security:

With the increasing adoption of Cloud technology in businesses, your cloud provider must be capable of ensuring data safety and availability.

5. IDS and IPS:

A blend of Intrusion Prevention (IPS) and Intrusion Detection systems (IDS) deters intruders and understands their intentions in advance.

6. Secure Web Practices:

Safe web browsing involves several aspects. They are -only using secured sites, watching what you download, not clicking on the pop-ups and ads, and not answering emails that ask you to donate your wealth.

7. Regular backups:

They avoid data loss and provide a fallback should when any illicit event happens to your primary device. The cyber security analyst salary demands the cybersecurity professional to perform multiple responsibilities and one of them is supervising regular backups.

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8. Device Updates and Security Patches:

They guarantee that all discovered loopholes are protected.

9. Incident Management:

All cybersecurity incidents must be properly recognized and communicated. This offers a log that is effective when determining ways to enhance the existing cybersecurity controls.

You can earn an admirable cyber security salary per month if you know how to mitigate most of the above-discussed cyberattacks.

Cyber Security Frameworks – Cybersecurity frameworks are a set of policies and procedures businesses can adopt to improve and upgrade its cybersecurity strategies. These frameworks are created by different cybersecurity organizations and government agencies and serve as guidelines for businesses to enhance their cybersecurity. They offer detailed directions on how to implement a five-step cybersecurity process.

Identify – Shortlist vulnerable assets within the organization.

Protect – Take care of required maintenance to safeguard data and assets.

Detect – Detect intrusions and breaches.

Respond – Respond to breaches 

Recover – Recover from any damage to data, systems, corporate finance, and reputation due to the attack.

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Learn about: Top 10 Highest Paying IT Certifications in India

Cyber Security Skill Gap

Besides the increasing demand for cybersecurity professionals, the industry faces an acute shortage of adequately trained individuals capable enough and proficient at filling the mounting cybersecurity roles. According to a NASSCOM report in 2019, India would need around 1 million expert cyber professionals by 2020. Education institutions recognized the gap and started to provide courses in cyber security in India but it is essential to analyze and compare the courses before taking an action. 

Despite having the most extensive IT talent pool in the world, today, India severely lacks skilled cybersecurity professionals. This acute shortage has resulted in companies’ willingness to pay a premium salary to cybersecurity professionals. According to some reports, the average cybersecurity experts’ salaries in India have grown to INR. 8.8 lakh.

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Cyber Security Jobs and Salaries in India

Following are some of the cybersecurity jobs that are witnessing a sharp increase in the pay.

1. Network Security Engineer

It’s a critical position in every organization. This individual is responsible for protecting the organization’s assets from threats and needs to possess astute organizational, technical, and communication skills.

The job responsibilities encompass a focus on quality control within the IT infrastructure, including designing, building, and protecting scalable, secure, and robust systems, assisting the company in understanding advanced cyber threats, working on operational data center systems and networks, and helping create robust strategies to protect the organizational structure. They also oversee the maintenance of routers, firewalls, switches, VPNs, and various network monitoring tools.

A network security engineer’s salary is in the range of INR 4 lakhs to 8 lakhs per annum.

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2. Cyber Security Analyst

A cybersecurity analyst is also referred to as an IT security analyst, security analyst, information system security analyst, or data security analyst. The person is primarily responsible for planning, implementing, and upgrading security controls and measures. The job involves maintaining data, monitoring security access, and protecting information systems and digital files against unauthorized access, modification, and destruction.

A security analyst is expected to manage a network, intrusion detection and prevention systems, conduct internal and external security audits, and analyze security breaches to determine their root cause. The individual is also responsible for defining, maintaining, and implementing corporate security policies and coordinate security plans with outside vendors. Further, the person is also responsible for training fellow employees in security procedures by following best practices to avoid security breaches.

The salary of a cybersecurity analyst starts from INR. 5 to 6 lakhs per annum.

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3. Security Architect

A security architect plays a primary role in designing the computer and network security architecture for an organization. This person helps with researching, planning, and developing security elements. The individual creates a design based on the company’s needs and then works together with the programming team to make the final structure.

Besides planning the architecture, a security analyst is expected to develop organizational procedures and policies regarding how employees should use the security systems and decide on the punitive actions in case of any lapses. Thus, the person is expected to know the business with an in-depth awareness of its technology and information needs.

The yearly salary of a security architect starts at INR. 17-22 lakhs.

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In-Demand Software Development Skills

4. Cyber Security Manager

A cybersecurity manager creates strategies to enhance Internet and network security related to various projects. This person is responsible for maintaining security protocols throughout the organization and manages a team of IT professionals to ensure the highest standards of data security are stringently maintained. The individual is expected to frequently review the existing security policies and make sure that the policies are based on new threats. Upskilling through courses in cyber security in India can help you become a manager quickly.  

Further, the person performs regular checks on all servers, routers, switches, and other connected devices to confirm that there are no loose ends or lapses in the security system. The person is also expected to hire new employees, prepare and oversee budgets, and evaluate and procure new security technologies and tools.

The average annual salary of a cybersecurity manager is INR. 12 lakhs. 

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5. Chief Information Security Officer (CISO)

Also referred to as CSO (Chief Security Executive), CISO is a C-level management executive. A report from PWC states that nowadays, 80+ percent of organizations have a CISO on the management team. A CISO oversees the operations of a company’s IT security department and related staff. This person is responsible for directing and managing operations, strategies, and budgets to safeguard the organization’s information assets.

A CISO works with the team to identify, build, implement, and manage organization-wide processes to ensure there are no security breaches. The person is expected to respond to incidents and devise appropriate controls and standards to mitigate security risks maintaining the necessary business continuity.

The average annual salary of a CISO is Rs. 23 LPA.

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6. Ethical Hackers

Ethical hackers are responsible for identifying vulnerabilities and security flaws and help businesses from malicious hackers. They work with the authorization of the organizations they work in to ensure that their hacking efforts are legal and legitimate.

They are responsible for penetrating computer systems and networks to quickly find and fix computer security vulnerabilities, perform reverse engineering, application analysis, protocol analysis, malware analysis, and debugging. Some ethical hackers begin with IT experience and get Certified Ethical Hacker credentials provided by the International Council of E-Commerce Consultants.

The annual salary of an ethical hacker ranges from INR 5 lakhs to 6 lakhs.

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Factors Affecting Cyber Security Engineer Salary in India

Cyber security engineer salaries in India can be affected by multiple factors. Let’s see some primary salary affecting factors:

1. Location

A cyber security analyst salary largely varies with the location in which they are working. There are particular cities in India that pay a significantly higher salary to cyber security personnel than the others. 

As per the reports of Indeed, cities in which cyber security average salary in India is on the higher side, are:

• Hyderabad, the average cyber security analyst salary is around 14 lakhs per annum
• Delhi, the average pay of a cyber security analyst is around 9 lakh per annum
• Bengaluru, the average salary of a cyber security analyst is around 8 lakh per annum
• Noida, the average salary of a cyber security analyst is around 8 lakh per annum
• Chennai, the average pay of a cyber security engineer salary is more than 8 lakh per annum. 

Other high-paying cities in India include Mumbai, Gurgaon and Pune

2. Experience

Years of experience play a crucial role in determining cyber security engineer salary in India

The reports of Payscale show that an entry-level security engineer can earn an average of  INR 3.9 Lakh per annum. On the other hand, any security engineer with more than 10 years of experience can easily earn more than INR 20 lakh per annum. 

Those with intermediate experience can also earn a handsome salary of around INR 10 lakh per annum. Apart from continuously upskilling and staying relevant with the norms of the field, one must also need to have relevant years of experience to get promoted to the dream role and build a strong cyber security career in India. 

3. Skills

In a field like cyber security, which deals with constantly evolving cyber threats, one has to massively focus on their skillsets and continuously upskill them. The fact that there is a huge labour gap in the industry makes it even more important to have the right set of skills.

To start, one must focus on the currently popular skills that can get into an entry-level job. Then they can understand the working environment better and upskill themselves as per their own needs as well as the needs of the industry, hence enhancing the cyber security engineer salary in India

Payscale shows that presently the most valued skills in the cyber security career include the knowledge of IT security and infrastructure, security information and event management (SIEM), vulnerability assessment, security risk management etc.  

Individuals with the aforementioned skillsets can easily earn cyber security jobs salary that is above average in the market. 

4. Company

Cyber security average salary in India is around 6 lakh per annum, however, it may highly vary with the company they are working in. some cyber security personnel also prefer running their own agencies or starting their cyber security career in India as a freelancer. In each case, the pay is extremely situational. 

Cyber security engineers in India can apply for both government and private job roles. Various Indian government organisations such as RAW, Military intelligence, CBI, CERT and various police departments actively recruit cyber security engineers. 

Top private companies in India that recruit cyber security engineers in India include Cognizant, Capegemini, Wipro, IBM, Accenture, CSS corporation and so forth. 

How to Pursue a Cyber Security Career?

The opportunities for cyber security analysts are currently at their prime in India. To protect against cyber attacks and security breaches, organizations are willing to pay good salary to cyber security experts who can safeguard their company and customers data. It includes the rise of cyber security salary in India. Online courses in cyber security in India are a great option for people who want to upskill but don’t have the option to leave their job. Unlike offline, you can revisit any video anytime. You can learn at your own pace. 

With a significantly soaring demand for cybersecurity professionals coupled with the lucrative salaries they offer, a cybersecurity career is becoming one of the most sought-after career options now. If you want to pursue this profession, upGrad and IIIT-B can help you with a Advanced Certificate Programme in Cyber Security . The course offers specialization in application security, cryptography, data secrecy, and network security.

This is one of the most popular courses in cybersecurity in India which takes 12 months also consists of live lectures. The course is imparted by world-class faculty members and industry experts and teaches you 6 programming languages and tools. Besides 360-degree career support consisting of the job fair, mock interviews, and more, the course also offers 3 guaranteed job interviews and a dedicated student success mentor.

The course consists of over 7 case studies and projects that provide you with the much-needed hands-on experience, besides theoretical knowledge. The course includes a capstone project that validates your understanding and knowledge at the end of the program. It is one of the most successful courses in cybersecurity in India with more than 40,000 learners, 300+ hiring partners and has EMI options for learners. 

The course is designed for IT and technology professionals, data professionals, IT and technical project leads and managers, testing professionals, and Java and other coding professionals and prepares you for various cybersecurity domain positions, including cybersecurity engineers, cybersecurity experts, and software developers. You need to have a Bachelor’s degree in attending the course, and no prior coding experience is required.

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