What Does a Network Security Engineer Do?

Network security engineers create and maintain security protocols to prevent unauthorized users from accessing sensitive information. It’s a job that’s in demand and growing, with higher-than-average pay and job security for workers in the IT field. As businesses increasingly choose to conduct daily operations using digital channels, it’s more important than ever to ensure the data they’re using is secure and protected from hackers. Explore how you will help support those efforts and learn more about what a network security engineer does to help prepare for your career.

Read more: What Is a Network Security Engineer’s Salary?

What is the role of a network security engineer?

A network security engineer designs, implements, maintains, and troubleshoots a business’s network security system. In this role, you would monitor a security system for any breaches or bugs before implementing proactive plans to prevent sensitive data from falling into the wrong hands. In addition, as a network security engineer, you will help create disaster recovery plans to ensure data backups occur quickly in case of a breach or cyberattack.

Network security engineers train to identify and prevent different potential threats and attacks, including:

• Trojan horses: Viruses that perpetrators disguise as benign code

• Viruses: Infections maliciously designed to interrupt and damage a network or device

• Malware: Software that contains code to purposely harm the end user, computer, or mobile device

• Spyware: Takes personal data and provides it to unauthorized sources

• Phishing: Emails that look normal but hide attempts to gather data

• Zero-day attacks: Hacking attempts that occur as soon as the program identifies a weakness in a security protocol

• Denial-of-service attacks: Attacks that overload a network with requests until it crashes

Network security engineers safeguard against these attacks and others using a combination of security hardware and software. If this is your chosen profession, you will design security protocols based on your client’s or place of business’s specific needs and types of sensitive data.

Read more: 5 Cybersecurity Threats to Know

Network security engineer tasks and responsibilities

The specific tasks you’ll do as a network security engineer will vary based on your place of employment but may include designing security frameworks, monitoring systems, and upgrading security software. Some typical responsibilities in this role include:

• Designing and implementing a network security system

• Identifying vulnerabilities and creating processes to safeguard against attacks

• Continuously monitoring the security system’s performance

• Carrying out simulated attacks to test for weaknesses

• Addressing viruses, phishing attempts, and data hacks

• Creating a disaster recovery plan in case of a breach

• Maintaining the computing network as needed

• Upgrading security software

• Reporting any security issues that occur

• Maintaining server and switch integrity

Read more: 5 Cybersecurity Career Paths (and How to Get Started)

What tools do network security engineers use?

A network security engineer uses various tools, including monitoring and antivirus software, to create a customized security process for their specific company. These tools include:

• Network monitoring software, like PacketFence, Snort, or Argus

• Web vulnerability scanning

• Antivirus software

• Firewalls

• Servers

• Access maintenance software

• Penetration tests software, like Wireshark

• Written security policies and procedures

Read more: What Are the Different Types of Penetration Testing?

Salary and job outlook for a network security engineer

According to Glassdoor, the average annual salary for a network security engineer in the US is $117,815 [1]. In addition to its solid earning potential, the field also has an estimated growth rate of 4 percent, suggesting opportunities on par with the national average for occupational growth across all jobs [2]. 

Consider where you work to maximize your wages. According to Zippia, the states offering the highest network security engineer salaries are Washington, West Virginia, and California, with average annual earnings ranging from $94,431 to $109,438 [3]. The retail industry tends to offer the highest wages [3].

How do you land network security engineer jobs?

Professionals with strong IT and security backgrounds tend to be successful in network security engineer roles. You will typically gain the foundational knowledge needed for this career through a four-year degree, although certifications and on-the-job experience are also helpful.

Qualifications, education, and certifications

Network security engineers commonly have a bachelor’s degree, often in fields like computer science, electrical engineering, information technology, or programming. Some professionals also gain a master’s degree to further their education, but it’s not required. Specialized certifications help demonstrate expertise in any software programs network security engineers use, like Juniper or Cisco. Because you’ll need to stay up-to-date on the latest security software trends, you should expect to engage in ongoing continued education and training.

Skills you need to become a network security engineer

IT networking and familiarity with cybersecurity issues are only two of the skills you’ll need for this position. Some technical and workplace skills you will need as a network security engineer include:

Technical skills

• Programming and networking

• Familiarity with building authentication systems

• Familiarity with applying firewalls, VPNs, and routers

• Experience with cyber laws

• Experience in testing, identifying, and addressing issues

Read more: Cybersecurity Job Description: What to Expect

Workplace skills

• Attention to detail that allows for efficient analysis of network issues

• Creativity in addressing unusual security breaches

• Problem-solving skills for flexible and immediate addressing of issues

• Communication skills for relaying information to colleagues

• The ability to stay calm when sudden issues occur

What experience do I need to become a network security engineer?

Businesses often prefer network security engineers with direct experience designing and implementing complex security networks. You can develop these skills with a four-year degree, an internship, or on-the-job training in a relevant industry or field.

What are the career paths to becoming a network security engineer?

You can look for entry-level positions after acquiring the education and experience needed to fulfill the role's expectations. For example, you might start as a junior network security analyst or a network administrator before gaining the expertise necessary for this role. Similarly, professionals in adjacent fields might move into this role as part of their own career advancement.

Once you’ve gained employment as a network security engineer, you can advance in this role by gaining management or supervisory roles. For example, you might move into a senior systems engineer role and then on to an IT manager or director.

Read more: 10 Cybersecurity Jobs: Entry-Level and Beyond

Begin your network security engineer career with Coursera

Network security engineer jobs are in demand and offer higher-than-average salaries and opportunities to grow within the role, leading to career progression.

Learn more about the role of a network security engineer and introduce yourself to the foundational skills and knowledge with courses and educational programs on Coursera. With options like Cisco’s Cybersecurity Operations Fundamentals Specialization or Google’s Cybersecurity Professional Certificate, you can sharpen your skills and set yourself apart from other professionals in your field. Explore these courses and more today.