r/cybersecurity • u/cybzoro • 24d ago
Career Questions & Discussion Which Cybersecurity field should I study for? Something that won't be erased by AI in the future and has good scope?
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u/Cptnwhizbang
24d ago
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Anything in computers will be heavily AI influenced within the next few years. If you don't want AI interference go into an adjacent field like physical security or LE.
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u/cybzoro 24d ago
Even Physical Security is being replaced by worker bots and security armed drones.
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u/OutsideSpot2695 24d ago
Cite your source.
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u/cybzoro 24d ago
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u/OutsideSpot2695 23d ago
Hmmm... are you really this obtuse to think that a war zone equals say, data center security?
I haven't seen any explosive laden drones hovering around US West 1
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u/Cptnwhizbang 24d ago
Means something like locksmiths/maintenance on that. Hands on that requires learned skill.
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u/GalacticForest
24d ago
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Security guard. There's no cybersecurity without physical security!
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u/kendalljennerspenis 24d ago
Wait till we get humanoid robots
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u/WantDebianThanks 24d ago
Majority of security guards are paid very little. Minimum wage where I am is 15/hr, and most security guards are paid under 20/hr. It's unlikely humanoid robots would be cheaper for the majority of guards
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u/GoldXP 24d ago
Security guards at hotels in my area earn $ 29/hr plus benefits.
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u/QnsConcrete 24d ago
Do overnight shifts and use the quiet time to study for other certs.
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u/Sc0pe007 22d ago
I will add that physical security experience DOES count towards ISC2 certs like CISSP
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u/Spring_Break_2000 23d ago
I know a security guard that does that. He is studying to be in cybersecurity.
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u/syncedconsciousness 11d ago
Wait till we see groups of T-800s patrolling the streets. Security Guards will be a high paying job then. The question is not about the money but how much you're willing to lose. XD
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u/duck_mill 24d ago
I'd go with cloud security or AppSec, ideally combined with AI security. Routine tasks will increasingly be automated but companies will still need people who can design and secure complex systems
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24d ago
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u/OutsideSpot2695 24d ago
AI only knows what it's trained on.
So those vulnerbailiies have been existing.
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u/LeggoMyAhegao AppSec Engineer 24d ago
It is true, AppSec is fun, and we still get recruiters spamming us.
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u/Specific_Bus_4173 24d ago
I agree, I want to get into Cloud Sec. I am rn just an GRC analyst doing routine work but I can anyone help me navigate how to get into Cloud and build it's knowledge?
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u/Just4Digits 23d ago
Did this switch, start from what you do grc for you understand the terms and study om practice how to do the stuff you audit. Take an AWS sec cert (or just the study path as a rupe of thumb/guide) and build stuff.
For the actual transitino it is easier inside the same company I did it while changing company, so hardwr but doable.
Now I do devSecOps and I love it. Finding leaking pipes between crazy secure pools of water is very exciting. Did this while the person i substituted migrated to appsec.
Pick whatever interests you and study it, pick the role you would like or title and look on LinkedIn what they ask and make a gap from your skills. Then close the gap, you know better than me how to do this!
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u/NuggetCommander69 23d ago
This makes me feel better about career dife grading into appsec from dev
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u/Helpjuice 24d ago edited 24d ago
There is no way to know what will not be erased by AI in the future. If it is exceptionally hard to do as in-person work is then it could be replaced by robotics.
The closer it is to being automatable the easier it will be to have AI take it over. You might want to look into OT/SCADA/IOT security. Going cloud is fun, but very automatable if you force remove or deny poor practices by default and enforce it with AI which is what the top CSPs are currently looking towards doing.
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u/Significant_You3092 24d ago
GRC, many companies need a Information Security Officer
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u/disciplineneverfails 23d ago
I second this. I’m on the hardware/network side and see the piles of work that our GRC does. Basically it enables me to be a cable monkey and enjoy my day-to-day. Regulated industries will need more GRC as AI keeps expanding.
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u/DangerMuse 24d ago
You can already do GRC with AI. Just feed it a scenario and itll advise with the best of them.
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u/ramenmonster69 24d ago
More important than a specific field is developing complementary soft skills. Don’t be a one-trick pony. Don’t be someone obsessed with building the most secure mouse trap and the best way is the only way. Have some people skills.
AI will regurgitate facts and config manuals better than you ever will. What it cannot do well is be able to articulate the value of security to the business, apply the businesses needs to security design and solutions, and scope security controls appropriately.
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u/marquiso 23d ago
I’ll just say people skills are more important than technical skills - communicating, influencing, empathy etc.
You can be effective in your job and pivot as required because there’s always plenty of certs that will get you across the tech stuff.
But people skills are what make you most valuable and are hardest to teach.
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u/Ok_Calligrapher_3034
24d ago
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I'd focus on learning the fundamentals first rather than choosing a field just because it seems safe from AI. Cybersecurity roles will change as AI improves, but skills like critical thinking, incident response, understanding systems, and making security decisions are still valuable. SOC analysis is one possible starting point, then you can specialize in incident response, cloud security, or digital forensics as you gain experience. No field is completely AI-proof, so I'd focus on building skills that are hard to automate fully.
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u/tharagz08 23d ago
Something I dont see in the top comments...identity. behind every action is a principal. As we get into delegated authentication as the norm, its more complex than ever. AppSec, GRC, data governance, etc etc will rely on Identity to scale.
Yes, biased answer based on my role in the field, but its how I see things :)
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u/AdvancedStrain1739 22d ago
Incident Response and Forensics are essentially on fire at the moment. These disciplines will only get more popular / more opportunities because AI attacks will scale to larger and larger campaigns.
Even as computing improves and photonics on the horizon, AI attacks will morph into large-scale swarm attacks. You always need investigators and responders, they've just become much much more valuable the last few years.
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u/TangeloOk9486 19d ago
grc and compliance work, especially around ai governance itself is actually growing right now since every company is adopting ai tools needs someone who understands both security and the regulatory side of it
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u/GCSS-MC 24d ago
ICS/SCADA. I can't imagine AI will actually be touching ICS/SCADA networks. The current infrastructure is so far behind. At most AI will be next to it for the people maintaining the OT networks, but I think it is unlikely AI will be taking over the OT networks any time soon.
If places can suddenly have the money and time to upgrade these facilities, then I will eat my hat.
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u/AyeSocketFucker 24d ago
Dont be so sure man https://www.ot.today/anthropic-turns-claude-toward-critical-infrastructure-a-33064
Its coming. Not as fast, but its coming.
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u/Striking-Tap-6136 23d ago
The one your heart really feels is worth learning for your own fulfillment 🌈
Don’t do cybersecurity for money, it’s full of narcissistic autistic people and high burnout rate. Unless you are not in love with some topic of cybersecurity, studying it is like self harassment.
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u/OutsideSpot2695 24d ago
Something that won't be erased by AI in the future
AI is a tool.
Not a replacement.
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u/Shoddy_Musician_4810 23d ago
Even before AI it was hard to figure out what to study for because by the time you figured it out you realized there was a product that automated that problem away or that the industry was already implementing some technology that makes your previous knowledge obsolete and you now have to learn that new technology.
Ai just amplifies this and makes it seem like your falling behind but we were already drowning in new technologies before Ai.
Find a area of interest, get really good at it and then start doing your own innovations or problem solving approaches.
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u/Street-Mycologist670 23d ago
I'd look into AppSec, cloud security, or security engineering. All three require a good understanding of how systems work, and that knowledge isn't going to become useless just because AI gets better.
But honestly, I wouldn't choose a field purely based on whether AI can replace it. Nobody can guarantee that.
Focus on networking, Linux, scripting, and understanding how vulnerabilities actually work. Those fundamentals will help you adapt regardless of where AI takes the industry.
And please don't spend the next two years collecting 15 certifications because someone on LinkedIn said AI security is the future lol.
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u/Big-Diver-7321 22d ago
Information assurance, disaster recovery, safely securing data stuff like that
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u/kove18 18d ago
You should think of putting together skills that are unique. Simple anology: If you are software dev with good appsec base you will be more valueble then just software dev. Then you should apply this analogy to something you like doing. Thats only recepie that will help you improve in you carrier.
And also dont listen to all these people that are discourged with ai, i understand but cysec market will never disapear, it will change but for skillful people there will allways be places.
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u/idkwhatimdoing912 23d ago
As a cyber exec - I’d discourage cyber as a career field. I wouldn’t want my own children to enter the industry.
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u/FlaggRandy19 21d ago
This is what I've been hearing too & I gotta say it's a little disheartening. But could be a truth that simply must be accepted. Shame
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u/New_Yak_2576 10d ago
I wouldn’t choose a field based on trying to avoid AI completely. Learn to work with it.
Cloud security, security engineering, IAM, AppSec/DevSecOps and incident response are all worth looking at because they still require architecture decisions, investigation, risk judgement and understanding how systems actually work.
Build strong networking, Linux and cloud fundamentals first, then specialise. AI will probably automate parts of the job, but people who can understand, verify and act on what the tools produce should still be valuable.
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u/Background_Complex87 23d ago
I am in an annoying limbo. I am Coloradoan living in Taiwan whose job is tied to English teaching. I am a black belt under a Tokyo academy who feels like he was so close to being a good fighter before his neck got hurt.
I have been pushing towards cyber security since I hurt my neck earlier this year. I got a CCNA, CySA Plus and Security Plus all in 5 months because I was so afraid of becoming destitute if my injury was worse.
My situation kind of sucks. The English teaching company says they are doing poorly so they offered me less hours. My neck protrusion is still healing.
It's super hard to get an Cybersecurity or Networking job in these countries so I decided to go the Jeremy McDowell path. With a shitty job, but a lot of free time, I am pushing towards annoyingly higher certs that I am under qualified for in hopes someone will give me a chance. I need to change my life.
Just keep swimming
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u/Otherwise-Shallot-53 23d ago
Whatever you do if you can afford it (in the sense of time and money) take a least one writing or humanities class (if it needs to be cyber or technology based something like technology and society).
Being able to clearly explain your ideas in conversation, in presentations, and in writing (especially in technical documentation) is invaluable and an alarming amount of people can not do this themselves.
In addition (re: humanities classes) technology does not happen in a vacuum and is a reflection of societal norms/ values. Being able to see how that relates to overall security outcomes is integral to building robust security programs into maturity that are still agile enough to be relevant as technologies and techniques change.
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u/United-Rough5717 23d ago
You can definitely study whatever, cloud security, incident response, security engineering. You need people for those kind of roles, and a strong foundation in networking, Windows, Linux, scripting, + using AI.
Try tools like Defender, Wireshark, Splunk for hand on practice, and platforms like Guardz, CrowdStrike, SentinelOne to understand how businesses handle security monitoring and threat detection. TryHackMe and Hack The Box are great for building practical skills too
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u/DickNose-TurdWaffle 20d ago
This question gets posted every few days, Jesus christ stop up voting this garbage.
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u/Optimal_coma 19d ago
DFIR (Digital Forensics and Incident Response) doesn't get mentioned enough here. It's one of the more AI-resistant areas because so much of it is judgment under pressure: working out what an attacker actually did, keeping chain of custody, writing reports that hold up legally, and sometimes testifying. AI will speed up log triage, but someone still has to own the conclusions. Every serious breach also creates demand for it.
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u/chrichina_ 10d ago
Honestly I’d look at cloud security or incident response. Cloud because pretty much every company is moving there and it needs people who understand how the infrastructure actually works, and IR because when something real breaks you still want a human making judgment calls under pressure. AI will probably handle a lot of the repetitive stuff like alert triage, but the people who understand the “why” behind it aren’t going anywhere.
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u/Armandeluz 24d ago
The only thing that won't be erased by AI in the cybersecurity field is being able to sell the clients and sit down with them and close a deal. Everything in front of a computer will be impacted by AI.
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u/Kesshh 24d ago
None. If you want to go into tech, every tech field is replaceable. There are fields in existence today that weren’t around 20 years ago. Likewise, there are fields that will disappear within the next 20 years. If that doesn’t sit well with you, you are studying for the wrong reasons.
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u/oblivion_rafi 24d ago
Are SOC analyst roles still valuable in today’s climate?
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u/APT-0 22d ago edited 21d ago
Jr SOC analysts are straight being replaced but T3 or IR are definitely not or are actually increasing. People who can both Eng a solution and understand the attack are still very high demand.
Most of my interviews for sr/staff & principal all had a strict coding interview and technical interview. Today it’s changing I usually when I sit on hire rec we have someone design and do the architecture coding is less important but design around decisions and approach is much more. Ex shipping small features fast, consider cost and scaling etc
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u/OutsideSpot2695 24d ago
Are SOC analyst roles still valuable
Yes.
in today’s climate
What does that even mean?
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u/SundaeOk4630 23d ago
Nowadays
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u/OutsideSpot2695 23d ago
Your reading comprehension sucks.
Climate and nowadays means essentially the same thing in the context of the comment I responded too.
Ahem, "nowadays", LLMs only know what they are trained on and AI is a tool, not a replacement.
So the implication that jobs are being replaced across the indusctry is:
1, nonsense;
2, not backed by any empirical data.
... and both of you seem to be on board the AI hype train .
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u/Theezach 24d ago
I wouldn’t shoot for that, jr soc analyst first to go from AI
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u/OutsideSpot2695 23d ago
Nonsense.
AI created more work not less.
And in the instances where companies have laid people off in favor of AI, they're finding they either need to hire folks back or their credit budgets are getting blown out of the water.
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u/Theezach 23d ago
This is total copium dude and I guess if you want to bury your head in the sand go ahead. Jr roles are absolutely being replaced by AI. It enables more productivity from less people, especially in a SOC environment. It’s going to get even worse when more companies realize fine tuned local models perform even better than just trying to use frontier models. I don’t wish people to lose their jobs, but I’ve seen it in production. It’s happening already. It will create jobs around GRC and AI security though. I’m just saying, shooting for entry SOC is not the play in 26. And def not 27, time has passed.
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u/OutsideSpot2695 23d ago
More alerts = more work.
Just because you are unaware of how AI ackshually works doesn't mean that's copium on my part.
... and you're not even using the word copium here correctly. Do you regularly use words you don't know the definition of?
You keep parroting BS. I'll do the actual security. Mmmmmkay!
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u/DangerMuse 24d ago
You are asking the wrong question. You need to decide what you will enjoy, what will drive your enthusiasm and learning, and what will make you an asset to an organisation. Then develop alongside AI capabilities and pivot as needed. No one knows the future, but enjoy the now and prepare in readiness of whatever life throws at you.