Prerit Pathak, a 28-year-old security engineer at Google, shares his experience of switching careers from software engineering to cybersecurity. He describes this change as a "leap of faith." Initially, he worked as a software engineer at Dell Technologies in India, but he always had a strong interest in cybersecurity, which he nurtured through self-study and participating in challenges. Despite his software background, he felt that cybersecurity careers were less visible and harder to break into compared to software engineering or AI roles. After earning a job offer from Dell, he continued to explore cybersecurity by reporting vulnerabilities he found and eventually decided to pursue a master's degree in information security at Carnegie Mellon University. This education helped him transition into the cybersecurity field. In 2021, he moved to the US for graduate school and completed an internship at Google, which led to a full-time job there in 2023. Now, as a security engineer, he conducts threat simulations and analyzes results to improve security measures. For others considering a similar career change, Prerit advises leveraging technical skills, networking, and preparing for interviews. He emphasizes the importance of communication skills in conveying technical risks effectively. Overall, he is grateful for his decision to switch to cybersecurity, viewing it as a rewarding journey.
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