Cybersecurity is a topic that incorporates more than just one field of knowledge. As technology is ever improving and advancing so are the associated risk. Vulnerabilities have multiplied as almost every aspect of our lives is merged with the digital. The field of Security in cyberspace takes more than just an understanding of computers and their networks, it also takes many other disciplinarians to fully grasp the subject’s entirety as a whole. To understand what all entails with cybersecurity an interdisciplinary approach is best.
By viewing ODU’s academic catalog, I’ve selected four other majors that relate to the field of cybersecurity: Computer Science, Psychology, Information Technology (IT), and Sociology with an emphasis in Criminal Justice.
Out of all 4 degrees I listed above, Computer Science is one of the most apparent degrees that relates to the field. This degree gives students the knowledge of operating systems of a computer’s software and hardware. Important skills learned are understanding as well as implementing computer code. This degree plays a role in the technical side of cyberspace. Personnel that holds a computer science degree can help build programs to protect an organization’s critical infrastructure. They can also create programs to make the different tasks easier and more efficient. Cybersecurity personnel work side by side with programmers to create a well-secure operation within an organization.
Understanding the human mind and human behavior is what a student learns when earning a psychology degree. This degree is relatable to the field of cybersecurity because human minds interact with the cyber world. Understanding the mental process of human beings is essential in figuring out behaviors that are acted out in cyberspace. What motives do certain adversaries have in exploiting targeted organizations, nation-states, or individuals? Applying a psychological discipline in a cybersecurity context can give a difficult problem more dimension by creating a different angle.
Information Technology (IT) is another obvious degree that relates to cybersecurity. This field focuses on computers and their networks to communicate information. This area of study largely covers a broad scope of technical skills and knowledge of computers. IT professionals use safeguards in place to ensure security within an organization. At times they work directly with the security of a given network and they work side by side with cybersecurity professionals as well.
The last, but not the least degree in this discussion is Sociology with an emphasis on criminal justice. This degree is relatable to cybersecurity because the study of societies and how they co-exist with each other plays a role in the cyber world. Before the internet, it was the people physically near each other that made a community. Now in the virtual world of the internet, any kind of community can form regardless of the distance. Recognizing how groups interact with each other, especially with different cultural groups, plays a role in confronting major social issues that not only play out online but in the physical world as well. And with an emphasis in criminal justice, this degree applied in the context of cybersecurity gains the perspective from a legal standpoint.