Apart from the obvious health issues, did you notice something else during this Covid-19 pandemic? How much time have you spent online?
You have probably spent much more time online than before the outbreak. Businesses have been scrambling to set up remote meetings and work-from-home schemes to keep their processes running. At home we have been using e-commerce, streaming services, and social media to keep our lives going. And in most cases this transition has happened without serious hitches. Did you ever wonder what it took to achieve this? Well, at the very least an incredible effort by many unseen IT administrators.
IT services that are unsecure are of no use
To be of any use, IT services need to be dependable. We need to be able to trust they will be available when we need them, that their content is as it should be, and that our business and personal data can only be accessed by those who should have access. In other words: in these times of Covid-19 we need our IT services to be secure more than ever.
Secure services need people that do the proper things to keep them secure (behaviour), and organisations that implement proper ways of managing their services (processes). But, without proper installation and configuration of the underlying hard- and software (technology), all this would be moot. No matter how secure people behave and how good the governance and procedures of an organisation are, if the technology itself isn’t secure it will all be for nothing.
IT security requires specialist knowledge
Most people use technology everyday of their lives without even thinking about it. They use their mobile devices, buy stuff online, participate in online meetings, and order their meal through a delivery service. Which is as it should be. But to make all that possible some people need to set it all up. They are the unsung heroes that make it all work. These IT (security) administrators are the ones with the knowledge and skills to install, configure, and maintain all those services we like to use so much. Knowledge and skills that didn’t come overnight. These people invested time and effort to learn how to keep “our” IT services running smoothly. They have studied and worked hard to achieve what it takes.
Many thanks to all the IT (security) administrators out there!
I think it would be great if once in a while we would take a moment to appreciate the people in the background that make all this possible. And not only during this Cybersecurity Awareness month.
If you are looking for a discipline that enables you to develop your talents, offers lots of opportunities and job security, then IT security is as good as any. This might just be the right time for you to pursue a career as an IT security administrator. What’s to stop you from taking up the challenge?
Our IT-Security Foundation Training and Certification is a great first step to becoming an IT Security administrator.
Hans de Vries is co-founder of the Security & Continuity Institute (SECO) and author of several courses on IT and information security. Early in his career he became fascinated by the lack of security in the networks and systems he had to maintain, which proved to be a rabbit hole that took him on a journey with many wonders and past many organisations.
