Curiosity Is Necessary To Succeed In San Francisco Information Security Field
As San Francisco businesses increasingly rely on the web and mobile applications to interact with and serve customers, it becomes increasingly difficult for them to monitor these assets for threats, such as malware, phishing, and exploits that are planted by attackers to target customers. With this in mind, it's not surprising to learn that the information security industry is expected to have an employment change of more than 50 percent through 2020. Elias Manousos, CEO of San Francisco-based RiskIQ is responsible for leading a very talented, hard-working team that is building the next great internet security company. RiskIQ appears to be on its way as its services are used by eight of the 10 largest financial institutions in the U.S. and five of the nine leading Internet companies in the world.
What is your background and education?
"Prior to founding RiskIQ, I was VP of R&D at web security company Securant Technologies, which was acquired by RSA Security in 2001. I attended Illinois Institute of Technology."
What type of services does RiskIQ provide?
"RiskIQ helps companies identify and eliminate internet threats that put their customers, company and brand at risk. Our technology provides visibility into a company's digital footprint and any threats it may harbor."
What career advice can you share with people interested in a career in information security?
"You need to learn everything you can about the internet and how it works. And, you need to be passionately curious about people's motives and behaviors. In short, you need to try to understand the mind of the cyber-criminal to stay one step ahead of their motives. When you are looking for a job, identify the companies you want to work for and research the problems they are trying to solve. Figure out how you can help the CEO solve those problems. Even if you don't end up reporting to the CEO, that person's agenda will dictate the most important roles and efforts of the company. Technical skills are certainly important, but the information security industry is not just made up of engineers. Whether its sales, marketing, events, social media, HR, finance, legal or operations; there are many different roles that make security companies tick. What's required is a passionate curiosity for figuring things out and getting things done."
Randy Yagi is a freelance writer covering all things San Francisco. In 2012, he was awarded a Media Fellowship from Stanford University. His work can be found on Examiner.com Examiner.com.
