Cybersecurity workforce needs to grow 145 percent to close skills gap : Global Study

(ISC)² – the world’s largest nonprofit membership association of certified cybersecurity professionals – announced the findings of its 2019 (ISC)² Cybersecurity Workforce Study, which for the first time estimates the current cybersecurity workforce (2.8 million professionals), as well as the amount of additional trained staff needed to close the skills gap (4.07 million professionals). The data indicates a necessary cybersecurity workforce increase of 145 percent.

“We’ve been evolving our research approach for 15 years to get to this point today, where we can confidently estimate the current workforce and better understand what it will take as an industry to add enough professionals to protect our critical assets,” said Wesley Simpson, chief operating officer, (ISC)². “Perhaps more importantly, the study provides actionable insights and strategies for building and growing strong cybersecurity teams. Knowing where we stand and the delta that needs to be filled is a powerful step along the pathway to overcoming our industry’s staffing challenges.”

Among the key findings from the study:

• 65 percent of organizations report a shortage of cybersecurity staff; a lack of skilled/experienced cybersecurity personnel is the top job concern among respondents (36 percent)


• Two-thirds (66 percent) of respondents report that they are either somewhat satisfied (37 percent) or very satisfied (29 percent) in their jobs; and 65 percent intend to work in cybersecurity for their entire careers


• 30 percent of survey respondents are women; 23 percent of whom have security-specific job titles


• 37 percent are below the age of 35, and 5 percent are categorized as Generation Z, under 25 years old


• 62 percent of large organizations with more than 500 employees have a CISO; that number drops to 50 percent among smaller organizations


• 48 percent of organizations represented say their security training budgets will increase within the next year


• 59 percent of cybersecurity professionals are currently pursuing a new security certification or plan to do so within the next year


• Just 42 percent of respondents indicate that they started their careers in cybersecurity; meaning 58 percent moved into the field from other disciplines


• Top recruiting sources outside of the core cybersecurity talent pool include new university graduates (28 percent), consultants/contractors (27 percent), other departments within an organization (26 percent), security/hardware vendors (25 percent) and career changers (24 percent).