Demand for Ethical Hackers is Growing in the U.S.

While hackers are often associated with malicious acts, such as denial-of-service attacks and posting private information on the web, there are some “white hat” hackers which help governments and companies locate potential security vulnerabilities in their systems and respond to any security breaches that could happen.

As the United States government is facing a growing threat from cybercriminals, it also needs people that know how to secure their systems. However, the government has a lot less security experts than it needs. In 2010, it needed 20,000 security experts, but only had around 1,000 of them. Due to this growing demand, the American government is working hard to put forward programs that will create a new generation of ethical hackers. But who are these white hat hackers?

A recent survey among 200 of the most prominent ethical hackers showed that 90% are male and 70% of them reside in the United States. Also, most of them are young. In fact, the average age of a hacker hovers between 16 and 19 years old. At an entry level position, a white hat hacker can expect to earn $50,000 to $100,000 per year. This salary can grow depending on experience and specific projects being worked on.

Despite the fact that there is a growing demand for computer security experts, the majority of American schools haven't done much to help create them. In fact, many high schools lack good computer science classes and are often stuck with outdated equipment, plus inexperienced teachers. In the United States, only around 5% of all high schools have an advanced computer science program available for their students. Given the lack of access to formal instruction related to computer security at the high school level, the majority of teenage hackers are self-taught. However, some organizations are aiming to change this. Codehs, a company founded by two graduates from Stanford University, has the goal of getting high schools in the United States to provide online programming classes to their students.

Source: www.homeland-security-degree.org