June 5, 2024 at 06:54AM
According to CyberSeek, the US needs over 200,000 more cybersecurity professionals. The initiative aims to offer detailed job market data. Cybersecurity job postings totaled nearly 470,000 between May 2023 and April 2024, with certain roles in high demand. Despite tech hiring difficulties, cybersecurity job postings decreased less than overall IT. In response, the US government is addressing the shortage, including through grants and legislation.
From the meeting notes, we can derive the following key takeaways:
1. There is a significant cybersecurity workforce shortage in the United States, with over 200,000 more workers needed to close the talent gap.
2. CyberSeek, a joint initiative of NIST’s NICE program, CompTIA, and Lightcast, provides detailed and actionable data on the cybersecurity job market.
3. Key findings from CyberSeek’s data show that cybersecurity job postings totaled nearly 470,000 between May 2023 and April 2024, with specific roles such as network and system engineers, system administrators, cybersecurity engineers, cybersecurity analysts, and information systems security officers in high demand.
4. Despite a decline in tech hiring, cybersecurity job postings decreased by 29% in the 12 months from May 2023 to April 2024, indicating that cybersecurity is less affected by hiring slowdowns than the overall IT sector.
5. Globally, a report from ISC2 in November 2023 revealed that the global cybersecurity workforce increased to a record 5.5 million, with a workforce gap of nearly 4 million, including over 500,000 in the United States.
6. The US government is taking steps to address the cybersecurity workforce shortage, including NIST’s announcement of $3.6 million in grants to help address the shortage and the introduction of the Diverse Cybersecurity Workforce Act to promote cybersecurity education and jobs for underrepresented and disadvantaged individuals.
These takeaways highlight the pressing need for cybersecurity talent in the United States and the ongoing efforts to address this shortage through government initiatives and industry collaborations.