We’ve seen quite a few layoffs across the tech sector lately. 140,000 Job cuts by well-known companies such as Amazon, Salesforce, Microsoft, and Tesla. As the recession continues, falling stock prices, further market contraction, and merger and acquisition activity are expected to force companies to further cut jobs. Yet the cybersecurity sector has so far remained relatively intact with respect to cyber experts (that’s another story) vendor, according to market conventions). The question is why, and will it continue to buck the trend?
A lot of the reason the security industry is booming is down to the fact that there’s not enough people to cut from security teams. Most companies struggle to hire enough staff due to growing skills gap — ISC2 “2022 Cybersecurity Workforce Survey“The global workforce is 4.7 million, but the gap is reported to be about as big as 3.4 million. It means that we have to take responsibility.”Security situation in 2022Reportedly, 76% of cybersecurity staff had to take on responsibilities they weren’t prepared to fill in the blanks.
Is my job safe?
But despite the demand for professionals, the broader cybersecurity sector is starting to feel the pain. Gartner We anticipate strong investments in cloud security, application security, and other information security software. However, even if cybersecurity spending increased in his 2023, it is being eroded by rising inflation and increasing solution/licensing costs, with a majority (70%) expecting budgets to be cut or frozen this year. I’m here. ESG research.
So what are the implications for the year ahead? First, while cybersecurity talent will continue to be in short supply, annual shortages and talent outflows will widen that gap and further increase demand. So while this is not universally true, the job is largely safe.
The shortage is concentrated, with the most in demand being people with 3-4+ years of experience. Ministry of Digital, Culture, Media and Sportsand Fortinet’s “The Cybersecurity Skills Gap in 2022“report. These findings are the result of ISACA’s “State of Cybersecurity 2022The report lists the top five skill sets in cloud computing, data protection, identity access management, incident response, and DevSecOps.
Investing in technology
Second, shrinking budgets can delay investments in automation. By giving security teams the help they needed, many hoped to ease the skills shortage and improve retention. This is bad news for the industry and will hinder progress, but it also increases the exposure of your organization. According to ISACA’s report, 69% of companies attacked last year were understaffed slightly or significantly. Half of employees say they’re far more likely to quit after a cyberattack, and job seekers say they’re far less likely to want to work for a company that’s been hit by a cyberattack. ”The true cost of cyber.”
However, the extent to which cyber spending will be affected is still an open question. according to “State of IT in 2023” According to the report, cybersecurity is expected to increase spending from IT budgets for software (11%), hardware (7%), cloud (6%) and managed services (11%). moreover,”2023 Global Tech OutlookAccording to reports, cybersecurity is now seen as a higher spending priority than innovation in digital transformation projects. IT security (44%) tops the list of spending priorities over the next 12 months, followed by cloud infrastructure (36%) and IT//cloud management (35%).
wage strike
Third, salaries are unlikely to continue to rise as they did before and after the pandemic, when some salaries posted double-digit growth.of Harvey Nash’s Hot Skills and Salary Report We found that specific cybersecurity roles plateaued, with 67% not getting a raise. Realistically, this will make retention more difficult and companies will have to work harder to keep their hard-earned talent (ISACA says 60% of companies are already poaching staff. ). That said, with the market shrinking, some cybersecurity professionals may opt for job security over salaries.
It seems unlikely that the cybersecurity sector will be completely immune to the economic downturn. Demand for skilled professionals remains high, but when cyber budgets are eaten up, there is less cash in circulation, forcing businesses to prioritize. Trying to do more with less resources is likely to increase workloads, resulting in increased staff turnover and threatening business continuity. So the one certainty we think we have is that companies will be understaffed and overexposed.
