IT careers: Security talent is red-hot

From the time he was 9, Daniel Kowalski, now 23, knew cybersecurity was going to be his thing. Captivated by the stealth work of hackers in commercials and in his favorite movie, Live Free or Die Hard, Kowalski nurtured his fascination with security from a young age, pursuing multiple IT and security certifications during high school and earning a degree in computer criminology at Florida State University.

After graduation, Kowalski moved through a couple of generic IT contract gigs — each providing some basic exposure to security — and landed an official role in his chosen field in less than a year: He’s now an information systems security engineer at defense contractor Harris Corp. “My future lies in security,” says Kowalski. “As far as where I want to be in security, it’s too early to say — I’ve not yet specialized in anything, but I’ve touched on everything.”

To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here