Advice on Transitioning into Cybersecurity: Best Certifications & Skills?

Martyana

Hi everyone,

I’m looking to transition into a career in cybersecurity and could really use some advice from those with experience in the field. My background is in IT support, where I’ve worked with networking, troubleshooting, and some basic system administration. However, I want to shift into cybersecurity and am not entirely sure where to start.

I’ve done some research on certifications, and the ones that seem to come up most often for beginners are CompTIA Security+, CEH, and CISSP (though I know CISSP requires experience). Would Security+ be a good first step, or should I be looking at something else first? I’ve also seen recommendations for practical certifications like eJPT or even OSCP if I want to get into penetration testing. Any thoughts on which would be best for someone in my position?

Aside from certifications, what are the most critical skills I should focus on? I have a solid understanding of networking (CCNA-level knowledge), but I know cybersecurity involves much more. Should I be learning scripting (Python, PowerShell)? How important is cloud security knowledge these days?

Finally, if anyone here has transitioned from IT support to cybersecurity, I’d love to hear about your experience. What worked for you? Were there any challenges you didn’t expect?

Thanks in advance for your insights! Any guidance or resources would be greatly appreciated.

Regards

dinger68

My recommendation is to work on your Security+ as that will who up the most in job searches at the opening level.  I would also concentrate on cloud certs personally.  If you mainly work in a company that is a Microsoft shop, then go for the AZ-900 Azure Fundamentals.

E Double U

My path was general IT -> networking -> info sec

Are you able to make the shift within your current employer? I am a "start where you are" type of guy so I would try to obtain certs most relevant for my current environment. When I have been hands-on for a while with a vendor's technology (Cisco, Microsoft, AWS) I went for those certs. I don't know how much weight the Security+ holds when applying for jobs, but I do see value in the knowledge. 

Good luck!