Security Marketing and Allure

We've all come across those fun "hacking" videos and it's a starting point that provides an appeal for those seeking to enter IT security as their career focus. There are also more professional commercials which engage the viewer into that movie mindset:

McAfee Foundstone Professional Services
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R55JvQCJCWc

Mandiant Overview
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Prni0MKX4hc

Lockheed Martin Cyber Security
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ykk6QPzkXHY

And Infosec seems to have all the cool-looking tools:

NetWitness Black Hat demo 2010
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOGcHIXiifs

It all looks slick with digital bits of glowing data in cyberspace for everyone to do cybersecurity "stuff" with it. Hands on the keyboards, big screens around you with scrolling green text against black backgrounds, complex graphs, digital fingerprints, electronic music, and that very intense seriousness... A very compelling package.

I feel like I'm watching Transformers.

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Comments

laughing_man

I think it has been firmly established that Security work is now the "sexiest" of all the IT fields. Unfortunately, these ads play on the things folks see on TV and in the movies, which of course is utterly fake or stylized (Hack the Gibson!).

It would be nice if some of these companys, instead of just trying to lure hapless IT neophytes with their training dollars, actually pointed them to other courses which would be truly beneficial. You need a solid IT background before going into Security, plain and simple. Learn the basics, work the help desk/desktop tech, become a sys admin, pay your dues.

JDMurray

More "Cyber Sexy Time" from Boeing: Boeing Cyber Solutions - YouTube

ptilsen

Yeah, I'm always a little leery when I see people asking about CEH and Pentesting. I think a lot of people who are not cut out for in-depth technical security are still very interested in it and get sucked in.

I'm currently pursuing a position in which I'll get to do a mixture of technical security and policy, and I'm very excited. But I'm not under any delusions of grandeur -- I've gotten to experience what the reality of IT security is in most businesses and I actually enjoy what it entails, which, put briefly, is a lot of paperwork. I think a lot of would-be security professionals think it's all "hacking" and such. Even pure pentesting is not even close to what some of these organizations make it out to be.

the_Grinch

You have to remember most of these ads are geared towards managers who wouldn't really know the difference and are impressed by flashy videos. It's not just Security that does this either. MSP's use these same tactics and what I can really classify as social engineering.

docrice

Marketing is social engineering. The fine art of manipulation of perceptions.

pumbaa_g

I saw this first hand last month when I went to give my 642 at Prometric, a guy had come in for giving the CCIE Security Exam. I stuck up a conversation with him regarding his work/Experience as somewhere down the line I do want to think about CISSP and to my utter surprise he is a fresh out of college. I always thought that Security is something that requires some amount of experience but things change I guess, as of now all the COOL kids are going into security

tpatt100

Sounds like government contractors and the private industry looking for more billable hours.

doobies

docrice wrote: »

Marketing is social engineering. The fine art of manipulation of perceptions.

all of these advirisements are.... hillarious. Your lucky in some shops if you get a dual core machine and a good pipe and working vpn. ROFLMAO.

There are a few places with super hitech shops... but for the most part these ads are a misrepresentation... ... sexy security job...... ha.. diacap is soooooo sexy.

pumbaa_g

I personally like using powershell with Green Font and Black Ground in office

makes people wonder what I am upto

onesaint

JDMurray wrote: »

More "Cyber Sexy Time" from Boeing: Boeing Cyber Solutions - YouTube

I'd really, really love to see an MST3K version of this commercial.