Could you be an ethical hacker?

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SaluteMyJob is once again teaming up with Abertay University, the UK’s leading provider of advanced ethical hacking courses, to deliver a pioneering programme that aims to support members of the Armed Forces community on their journey towards a promising and exciting new career in this field …

A partnership between SaluteMyJob, Abertay University and the Scottish Business Resilience Centre is offering a short, tutored penetration testing course to serving personnel, veterans, reservists and military spouses.

This penetration testing, or ‘ethical hacking’, course will help students develop a critical understanding of the tools used to examine the security of a device or network. The course is designed to provide learners with the knowledge and skills to gain a commercially recognised qualification and, where appropriate, the opportunity to apply their skills in a practical environment.

Says Andrew Jackson, managing director of SaluteMyJob: ‘Our first pilot with Abertay University in 2021 was a great success. We are delighted to be partnering up with them again to help fill a notable shortage of penetration testers – and with members of the Armed Forces community, whose transferable skills make them ideal in these roles.

‘It’s an ideal opportunity for those with a security mind-set, who possess military security skills and experience, and are trained to analyse the enemy’s plan and means of attack.’

The programme, which is now open for applications, comprises four stages, starting with preparatory online training. After that, students will be enrolled onto the intensive eight-week penetration testing course. This training – which will be delivered by the academic team from Abertay University Cyber Security Division – will be delivered entirely online.

On completion of the programme students will be able to sit the CREST Practitioner Security Analyst (CPSA) exam and have an opportunity to gain a recognised qualification in cyber security.

SaluteMyJob is already working with a number of employer partners to provide paid work placement opportunities and employment into permanent roles, from summer 2023 onwards, allowing participants to apply their learning in practical and commercial environments.

Dr Natalie Coull, head of the Division of Cybersecurity at Abertay University, comments: ‘It’s great to be working with SaluteMyJob and the Scottish Business Resilience Centre on this project, which will help upskill veterans as they take their first steps towards entering the cyber security industry. Abertay’s core mission is to provide transformational opportunities to our students. As a UK leader in cyber security education, we are committed to ensuring those opportunities extend to all of the groups engaging with us, from a wide range of backgrounds.’

Following the successful completion of this pilot, the hope is to open up the opportunity to more members of the Armed Forces community, with further courses running later in the year.

Click here to find out more about the course and for more info about careers in cyber security, click here to our full-length feature.

ABOUT SALUTEMYJOB
Bridging the gap between employers and ex-military job-seekers, SaluteMyJob helps veterans to transition into civilian employment and realise their potential.

ABOUT ABERTAY UNIVERSITY
Abertay University is a UK leader in cyber security education and Scotland’s only institution to have achieved gold-level Academic Centre for Excellence in Cyber Security Education status – an accolade awarded by the National Cyber Security Centre, part of GCHQ. Its students develop a practical and offensive approach by deliberately breaking computer systems and building cyber security defences and countermeasures. It launched the world’s first degree in ethical hacking in 2001, and teaching staff have a wealth of expertise in penetration testing, digital forensics, human–computer interaction, usable security, IoT, secure software development, AI and parallel programming. 

Pictured top: Students from the previous course at Abertay University