Common Programming Languages used in the 21st Century

Cyber Security is a major topic in today's society, due to the amount of technology that we have & use. Although technology helps and improves our way of life, it also poses a major threat to humanity and society. An investigation conducted by the University of Maryland deduced that there is a hacker attack every 39 seconds around the globe and a recent study conducted by the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation, reported a 300% increase in reported cyber-crimes since COVID-19.

As you can see, cybercrime is a major threat in today's society and poses a number of threats including: identity theft, loss of money for both business and users & most importantly the control over major military assets and surveillance platforms. This is why many governments and businesses are employing Cyber Security experts & analysts to outline flaws in their systems, in order to better protect and defend against such cyber criminals.

So, now that you've been introduced to what cyber security is (if you didn't know before) and how cyber-crime is a major threat to today's society, here are some of the major programming languages that are used today, by cyber criminals, to infiltrate and penetrate our systems:

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1. Python

Python is a high-level programming language highly popular among the cyber experts and has gained much traction owing to its code readability, simple syntax, and wide libraries. According to an investigation that came out of a Redwood (US) based company, there is at least 20% of python related security scripts that have been developed within Github's security-related repositories. Furthermore, a leading cyber security company 'Imperva' recently discovered that, globally, 77% of the attacks were developed using python.

2. JavaScript

JavaScript is the most common programming language out there. Primarily, JavaScript powers the internet and adds interactivity to the web pages. Owing to its extensive usage and prevalence on the web, JavaScript is one language that you really need to know to advance in your cyber security career. Due to JavaScripts common use in web applications and websites, it was one of the most common languages used by cyber criminals today, as websites and web applications are the easiest to penetrate and exploit. Furthermore, users & businesses around the globe depend on the internet to function, so cyber criminals use this fact to their advantage by duplicating and alternating the JavaScript code within these websites to catch unsuspecting users.

3. SQL

SQL is most often used for managing the data stored in the databases. However, hackers are increasingly utilizing it to damage or steal the stored data. SQL attacks usually feature some sort of SQL injection, which is the primary method cyber criminals use to infiltrate databases in websites and other platforms. According to a 2020 research, 8% of websites on the internet have some sort of SQL injection vulnerability, and although this number may seem small, it definitely shows that cyber criminals are aware of the vulnerability and are able to exploit it.

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Cybersecurity is a vast and fast-evolving field that offers a lot of diversity in terms of jobs and experiences, however if you don't have the underlying knowledge of how computers work and operate then it is very hard to succeed in the industry. Here are some extra topics that are related to becoming a Cybersecurity expert or analyst: networking methods, administration, and automation , software development and attack methods , data forensics and intrusion detection , systems analysis and design , enterprise needs , global ethics.