A Guide to Prepare for A Cybersecurity Interview

Cybersecurity, a term that takes us to all the stories we have heard of cyberattacks. Isn’t it?

Its importance is often anticipated in multiple industries including banking, finance, software, manufacturing, and several others.

As a result, cybersecurity professionals are given immense importance in the workplace today. This also means that the interview for this job role is difficult. Not only for the interviewee but also for the interviewer. The pressure of meeting company requirements many times encourages the interviewer to ask difficult, rather tricky questions.

To help you get through difficult interviews like these, we have prepared a list of interview questions. Read on.

Technical Questions

Let’s be honest, you need both technical and non-technical skills for every job role. This requirement is heightened in cybersecurity because you need to communicate with various departments and company stakeholders. So, keeping this in mind, we will first discuss some technical questions of basic level and then move to a few non-technical questions.

What is Vulnerability, Risk, And Threat?

All three terms are closely intertwined. While the vulnerability is the gap in your security system, the threat is an exploit that an attacker can pose. The threat and vulnerability together pose a risk in the system.

Define IPS and IDS

An IPS or intrusion prevention system will detect and then take actions to prevent the intrusion in the system. An IDS or intrusion detection system is different. It will only detect the intrusion and inform the team or the admin. The admin or the team further becomes responsible for taking care of this intrusion.

What is the Difference in Hashing and Encryption?

You can reverse the encryption, which is not possible with hashing. Whenever hashing is done on a system, it can only be cracked using collision attacks or rainbow tables. You can’t reverse hashing.

Further, hashing is used to improve the integrity of the systems and encryption is used to improve the confidentiality of the systems.

What is CSRF?

Cross Site Request Forgery is a type of vulnerability posed on your systems. In this type of vulnerability, your server fails to check the authenticity of the request, whether it is from a trusted source or not. Hence, the request is handled directly.

Define Security Misconfiguration

Security misconfiguration is related to any device, network, or application-related vulnerability in the system which can be utilized by an attacker. This can be as simple as leaving the default password and username for a long time. All these vulnerabilities come under security misconfiguration.

Define Firewall.

A firewall helps you block or allow traffic based on the defined configuration. You can place this device on the boundary of untrusted or trusted networks.

What are NIDS and HIDS?

NIDS is a network intrusion detection system and HIDS is a host intrusion detection system. Both the system work similarly, but HIDS is placed on host and NIDS is placed on the network. This is why NIDS is preferred for enterprises because it is easier to manage and it consumes less processing power.

Define Compliance.

Every industry has to obey to some cybersecurity rules laid out by the governing authorities. Following these rules and guidelines is equivalent to maintaining compliance. When compliance is ignored, several penalties and fines are imposed on the organization.

Non-Technical Questions

There are several non-technical questions which you will be asked in your interview. Two of the most important non-technical questions we have discussed below.

What Are You Looking for in This Job Role?

There are a lot of questions that can arise under this question. For example, why do you want to change your job role? Do you have the required skill set? Why do you deserve a high salary?

To answer all these questions, simply focus on your passion and encouragement. There is always something that encourages you towards a job. Focus on that. Keep that encouragement in mind and answer confidently. However, remember to keep your tone answer both positive.

What Are Your Strengths and Weaknesses?

Draw upon your past experiences and explain what are your strengths and weaknesses. However, be careful because if you say that not being a team player is your weakness, then you might not get selected at all. So, carefully pick your answers. Think out of the box.

Additional Tips for The Interview

  • Keep your answers short and sweet. It is natural to make your answers unnecessarily long but it is not a written exam. You don’t want to irritate your interviewee with extremely boring answers.


  • Stay updated with the news of cybersecurity. New attacks, policies, etc.


  • Always accompany your answers with examples wherever possible. It just shows that you actually understand the concept.



Whenever you appear for a cybersecurity interview, always focus on the basics. You should know the basics and have non-technical skills. Here, we are assuming that you already have deep knowledge of cybersecurity concepts but the interviewer may want to only judge your extra-capabilities in the interview. So, be prepared.