Ethical hacking has been attracting many eyes recently and for good reasons. There are many advantages of ethical hacking as a career – an immense amount of opportunities and growth scope as well as the mystery surrounding the word “hacking” is intriguing, to say the least. 

In addition to the above, there are many more reasons to learn ethical hacking but before we dive into them.

Let’s have an introduction to ethical hacking

Well, you might know that hacking is illegal. Ethical hacking is simply hacking but without any malicious intentions like stealing or deleting data. 

Ethical hacking involves using the methods of hacking to penetrate into a system, find security vulnerabilities, and report them back to the authorities so that they can be improved upon. 

While both ethical and unethical hacking is done by hackers, ethical hackers typically operate with proper authorization as well as to protect the system rather than exploiting it.

Importance of ethical hacking

If you ever get the chance to learn cybersecurity, you will understand the importance of ethical hackers in this digital world. 

Cybersecurity is a specialization in the field of ethical hacking and refers to protecting the security of a system against hacking. 

Hackers are experts in programming languages and know how to play around the security of software with just their fingertips. Moreover, the growth of the digital world has made it important to protect ourselves from not just the physical but also the cyber threats

Just take a good look around.

Every device surrounding you is a potential target for a hacker. They can extract sensitive information, spread certain agendas as well as blackmail for ransom.

Ethical hackers play a huge role in protecting your data from hackers that try to attack you in cyberspace. They are also vital in protecting valuable data of businesses and organizations. 

Now let us take a look at the advantages of ethical hacking

Advantages of ethical hacking

If anyone takes time and learn ethical hacking, they can enjoy some of the advantages associated with it. 

Develop a hacker’s mindset

As mentioned before, ethical hacking is basically hacking just legally. As a result, to learn ethical hacking one would have to learn how to hack. 

Consequently, one ends up developing the mindset of a hacker. This is important as it helps you stay calm even while you are under attack. 

As Sun Tzu once said, “If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles.”

Meaning that if you are trying to make a relating field to ethical hacking as a career, like IT fields, learning ethical hacking can really prove to be helpful. 

Career scope in ethical hacking

It is estimates that India currently requires 77,000 Ethical Hackers but is creating only 15,000 per year. Moreover, a recent study conducted by the Bureau of labor statistics shows that there are around 300,000 job opportunities for ethical hackers. 

Information is one of the, if not, the most valuable assets of any organization. As a result, they pay specialists who can protect this information really well. 

How much you ask?

With the right amount of qualification and experience, an ethical hacker can earn up to an average of INR 15 lakhs per annum!

Moreover, you can be sure that if you took the extra step like learn cybersecurity and become an expert in that, you will be paid much more. 

Ethical hacking as a career equals many benefits

Apart from the incredible salary and job opportunities, there are other job advantages of ethical hacking:

1. Not so boring job 

Ethical hacking as a career may seem like spending hours upon hours sitting behind a computer and inputting codes. But the reality is much different. 

The old threats evolve into new ones with unknown nature or intent. Black hat hackers constantly try to penetrate through your security, making you brainstorm frequently in the hopes of stopping them. 

A typical job day of an ethical hacker is filled with cyber-thrill. Despite being a technical field, ethical hacking as a career requires a lot of creativity. 

2. Global recognition

To become an expert in ethical hacking, you will need to gain a CEH certification. This certification holds incredible value in the realm of ethical hacking. 

Moreover, it is a globally recognized certification that requires you to learn the various technical and practical skills such as footprinting, scanning, hacking into a network, and much more. 

Once you start to learn ethical hacking and set out to become a certified ethical hacker, not only will you possess skills valuable to the top organizations but also a qualification that is recognized by the world. 

3. Get to travel frequently

The number of cyber-threats far outweighs the number of ethical hackers produced every year. However bad this new maybe, it grants one of the biggest advantages of ethical hacking to those who learn it.

The opportunity to travel… a lot!!! 

Big organizations might call for your help and sponsor all your travel expenses. Pursuing ethical hacking as a career and becoming an expert in it comes with the chance of getting a lifetime travel-pass. 

4. Work for the biggest companies

Whether you believe it or not, but one of the fastest ways to work for companies like Google, Facebook, and even Netflix. 

Due to the lack of professionals, ethical hackers are always high in demand. A simple Google search of “Facebook Jobs” or any other fortune 500 companies is sufficient to know that they are always in a lookout for a highly-skilled hacker. 

Increasing your value as an employee

If you are a professional in the field of IT then an amazing way to increase your value as well as increase your salary is to learn ethical hacking.

Understanding a hacker’s mindset and the techniques that might have been used can save a lot of money for your organization. As a result, it makes you a more valuable asset. One that knows how to do his/her job as well as protect the system against smaller attacks. 

The ones who work more than they are paid for will always be earning more than those who don’t

In addition to all of the above, you also have the ability to not get bounded by a particular industry. Due to literally every organization needing an ethical hacker, you will have the freedom to work in any industry. 

From working for Netflix to working for a major fashion brand such as Nike, an ethical hacker is needed by all of them.