I often get these questions:

• I am looking into getting into cyber security and wanted to know where I should start.
• I saw an ad for Cert X or Y, should I get it? Will I get a job if I get it (short answer - no)

For starters you will want to get a lay of the land and see which part of cybersecurity you want to enter. It's a vast field. Hard to know where to start if there isn't a good destination or (mid point) along the way.

So:

1. Take a look at jobs that are out there and see what that job entails. Take a look at the certs and requirements. Keep in mind, sometimes they ask for a lot, so don't get discouraged. Apply to jobs even, this will get things going.

2. Take your updated resume and put it into chatGPT. Ask it what cybersecurity roles would be best suited for your experience. Add additional personal parameters on what your strengths, passions, and likes are technically and socially.

   1. Prompts
      1. Review my resume, and extract relevant aspects to the cybersecurity field
      2. Tell me all the positions that could use my experience
      3. What should I learn that would be help me get up to speed quickly based on my resume experience
      4. I want to get into the information security field. Ask me 25 questions to help you understand more about me, my strengths, weaknesses, and give me step by step recommendations for a path forward based on those answer. Keep in mind the full scope of information security jobs, and which ones I would be best suited for.

3. Listen to the Getting Into Infosec Podcast. There you will hear other people's journey's into the field. You will learn about different positions as well as their challenges trying to transition. I created this podcast for others to learn and be encouraged about the field. Start from the beginning and binge the whole thing 1.

   https://player.captivate.fm/show/27285951-a2a8-4614-afa2-4c42ee9bcb1d

4. Listen to other media to build the cybersecurity mindset. It has it's own language and culture. Checkout Darknet Diaries for interesting stories and SANS Daily Stormcast for daily news.

5. Level up your skills. Now that you have an idea of what positions might be interesting, learn those skills starting at your own home. You are the main security and IT person at your home, so it's a great place to start. If you are interested in web application security, then get into bug bounty. Use AI to help you!

6. Checkout my latest guide. DO projects to gain experience!

[https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/154LPUwd1zoXPOYJ5q6Jo_R8u5JbbiFieBYloVXYBauY/edit?slide=id.p#slide=id.p](https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/154LPUwd1zoXPOYJ5q6Jo_R8u5JbbiFieBYloVXYBauY/preview?slide=id.p#slide=id.p)

Hopefully that's a good start for you.

ps. I also wrote a book on the topic. If we sat down for an hour and half over coffee, this is what I would say. If you have financial issues or if you’re local, happy to give you a free copy.

https://www.amazon.com/Breaking-Practical-Starting-Information-Security-ebook/dp/B07N15GTPC/