The Cyber Skills Gap Is Still Not Getting Better

Uploaded on 2023-11-14 in NEWS-Cybersecurity News, JOBS-Training, JOBS-Careers, FREE TO VIEW

The global cyber security workforce gap, which is the difference between the number of jobs in cyber security and the shortfall number of people with the skills to fill those jobs, is stuck at around four million. This is despite growing to 5.5 million professionals overall. This a 12.6% increase compared to 2022, according to the 2023 Cybersecurity Workforce Study from ISC2.

While the total worldwide cyber security workforce grew 8.7% the study by ISC2 clearly shows that the industry needs millions more qualified workers to defend against constantly increasing cyber security threats.

More than nine in ten (92%) of professionals surveyed revealed they had skills gaps in their organisation, with 67% reporting having a shortage of cyber security staff needed to prevent and troubleshoot security issues. This shortfall comes despite an 8.7% increase in the global cyber security workforce compared with 2022, reaching 5.5 million professionals.

Workforce Reductions

The cyber skills gap has been made worse by significant cutbacks to cybersecurity operations resulting from the global economic downturn. The cyber security profession is reliant on a continued flow of fresh talent, driven by its constant evolution.

Rapidly emerging threats have the potential to cripple even the largest organisations. Hackers are always looking for new ways to penetrate networks and steal data. Consequently, there is an apparently insatiable demand for cyber security professionals who can keep up with the pace of change.

Nearly half (47%) of respondents said they had experienced cyber-related cutbacks in the past year, including layoffs, budget cuts and hiring or promotion freezes. Of this group, 22% were impacted by layoffs, both first- and second-hand, within cyber security.

An additional 28% of cyber professionals reported redundancies elsewhere in their organisations, which has had a significant impact on security teams.

More than a third (35%) of respondents in organisations that had implemented workforce reductions have seen cyber security training programs eliminated.

Almost three-quarters (71%) of this group reported a negative impact on their workload as a result of organisational cutbacks, while 57% felt their threat response was inhibited.

Despite the attritional nature of the work, job satisfaction remains high with 70% reporting being somewhat or very satisfied in their jobs today. This represents a slight fall from 74% in 2022.

Insider Threats Are Increasing

Over half (52%) of respondents reported an increase in insider risk-related incidents, and half had either personal or second-hand contact with a malicious insider in the past year. Of those who have had this kind of contact, 39% said they or someone they know has been approached to become a malicious insider at their organisation. Meanwhile, 33% have been targeted at home or at work because of their professional role.

This rise in insider threats is linked to the economic environment, with 71% of respondents agreeing that times of economic uncertainty increases the risk of malicious insiders.

Lack Of AI Skills

The Workforce Study also found that 47% of respondents admitted they have little knowledge of Artificial Intelligence (AI), and just 16% said they have significant knowledge in this area. AI and machine learning (32%) was behind only cloud security (35%) for the area which had the most gaps in knowledge in security teams. In third was zero trust implementation (29%).

Risks associated with AI and emerging technologies are one the biggest challenges facing cyber security professionals over the next two years (45%), followed by worker/skill shortages (43%) and keeping up with changing regulatory requirements (38%).

Encouragingly, 52% of cyber professionals said their organisations are governing the use of AI internally, expanding their management of AI or planning to formally manage AI use within the next 12 months.
Participants also listed advancements in AI as the third most positive impact on their ability to secure their organisation, behind zero trust (34%) and automation (40%).

Improvements In Diversity

Increased diversity in the cyber security workforce was one significant findings with 66% of newcomers to the cybersecurity profession within the US, Canada, Ireland and the UK in the past 12 months being non-white. Another finding was that security teams are increasingly embracing diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, with 69% stating that an inclusive environment is essential for their team to be able to succeed.

Organisations adopting skills-based hiring have had an impact, with an average of 25.5% women in their workforce compared to 22.2% among those who haven't embraced this initiative.

Conclusion

Despite overall growth in the number of skilled professionals, the cyber security skills gap is more pressing than ever. Cyber security is vital to the continued development of the digital world, with the security of users' most sensitive and confidential information dependent on the availability of their special skills.

ICS2: Simpilearn: CDSA: Infosecurity Magazine: CybersecurityDive: CIODive:

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