For the first time since (ISC)2 started tracking cybersecurity workforce numbers in 2004, we have seen a decrease in the skills gap, from 4.07 million in 2019 to 3.12 million. According to the 2020 (ISC)2Cybersecurity Workforce Study, the workforce increased 25% from 2019 to a total of 3.5 million professionals worldwide.
The numbers reflect an increase in new entrants to the field – 700,000 of them – but that doesn’t tell the whole story. Another contributing factor is an apparent reduction in demand as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has had significant economic impacts around the world.
The pandemic has been the dominant story of 2020, and that is reflected in the findings of the Workforce Study. When the pandemic started early in the year, cybersecurity professionals in many cases were called upon to set up secure remote environments for their organizations’ staff, in some cases within one day.
Even so, security incidents stayed near baseline levels, according to the study’s findings. But cybersecurity professionals recognize that doesn’t mean they can rest on their laurels, as more than half of the study’s 3,790 respondents worldwide (56%) say cybersecurity staff shortages are creating risks for their organizations.
Despite economic hardships caused by the global pandemic at a macro level, organizations with 500 to 1,000 employees expanded their cybersecurity teams over the past year. More than half of respondents say the pandemic did not affect their jobs but many knew other cybersecurity professionals whose jobs were affected. Nearly one-fifth (19%) say they took a cut in pay because of the ..
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