Recent data shows that the unemployment rate for cybersecurity professionals is at zero percent. It’s clear that cybersecurity professionals are in-demand, and experts estimate that there may be a 1 million person shortage in this growing field, where there are estimated to be two job openings for every qualified applicant.
Demand for Cybersecurity Professionals is High and Growing Higher
Nearly every business with a network or data center needs cybersecurity professionals to guard against hacking and security breaches of all kinds. New security threats are being reported each day, and skilled professionals are the only hope many businesses have of protecting their data and operations.
Protecting customer data is a top priority for businesses, and there is often a need to protect proprietary formulas, methods, or other types of data as well. Privacy isn’t just a nice thing to have; it’s a necessary component for businesses that seek to operate in today’s complex environment.
Cybercrimes cost businesses and individuals $3 trillion last year, and that figure is expected to increase to $6 trillion by 2021. Cybercrime includes lost data, money, productivity from downtime, intellectual property, embezzlement, and fraud. Cybersecurity is even a top headline in the news, with reports that hacking occurred during the recent U.S. election process.
So many business processes are digital these days, and digital systems have vulnerabilities that can lead to security breaches. Businesses and organizations will be willing to offer top salaries and benefits to those who have skills in cybersecurity and can use them to keep hackers at bay.
Other Benefits of Hiring Cybersecurity Professionals
While security protection is an important component of any business, there are other benefits to hiring cybersecurity professionals as well. Implementing a quality cybersecurity plan can save or make companies money in several key ways:
–Creating customer trust that their information will be secure
–Creating shareholder value in a more secure product
–Streamlining operations by getting rid of processes that create or worsen security threats
–Easier compliance with government regulations
–Less downtime, which will keep productivity levels higher
Why Study Cybersecurity?
Finding an IT job doesn’t have to be difficult. A cybersecurity professional will have a choice from among jobs where they will be appreciated and valued when entering the cybersecurity field. While employers may seem to have unrealistic expectations and qualifications for hiring, they will find themselves having to make a quality offer to hire a well-trained cybersecurity professional to protect their servers and data.
There are many areas around the country looking to hire qualified cybersecurity personnel. Currently, the New York/Jersey City/Newark areas have the second-largest number of open cybersecurity positions; only the Washington, DC metro area is looking to fill more cybersecurity positions, according to CyberSeek’s heat map.
PC AGE offers training to help qualified students start or advance in an IT career, including the cybersecurity field. Contact us to find out more about the training we offer IT professionals.
Rameez Khizer, IT Marketing