World Leaders Focus on Cybersecurity, But Survey Shows 86% See A Global Skills Shortage

In Washington tonight, US President Barack Obama will propose legislative action to focus on cybersecurity during his State of the Union address. In Davos, 2,500 world leaders from government, industry and civic society are gathering today for the World Economic Forum (WEF) to discuss what WEF Chairman Klaus Schwab describes as “The New Context.” Front and center on the agenda are cybersecurity, risk and the Internet of Things.

Large-scale data breaches have brought this issue to the forefront and showcase that even well-protected, mature organizations face difficulties keeping data secure. And with cyberattacks rising exponentially, it’s no surprise that organizations are aggressively trying to hire those with the skills to prevent them.

There is one problem, however: the severe shortage of skilled cybersecurity professionals. According to the ISACA 2015 Global Cybersecurity Status Report, 86% of respondents believe there is a shortage of skilled cybersecurity professionals and 92% of those whose organizations plan to hire cybersecurity professionals in 2015 say it will be difficult to find skilled candidates. The ISACA 2015 Global Cybersecurity Status Report, conducted 13-15 January 2015, polled more than 3,400 ISACA members in 129 countries. It found that close to half (46 percent) expect their organization to face a cyberattack in 2015, and 83 percent believe cyberattacks are one of the top three threats facing organizations today.

ISACA, which assisted the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in the development of the US Cybersecurity Framework, has launched its Cybersecurity Nexus (CSX) program. CSX is a global resource for enterprises and professionals that helps identify, develop and train the cybersecurity workforce, while also raising the awareness of cybersecurity throughout the organization. CSX has extensive resources to address the cybersecurity skills gap through training, mentoring, performance-based credentials and applied research. CSX also now offers a Cybersecurity Legislation Watch center, which features the new CSX Special Report.

Cybersecurity is everyone’s business. It is absolutely essential that we accelerate the pace of creating a cyber-aware and cyber-trained society. And we need to do it together. As philosopher and inventor Ben Franklin once said, “We can hang together, or we can hang separately.” At ISACA, we are doing our part by providing knowledge and the tools to assure trust in a digital world.

Matt Loeb, CAE
Chief Executive Officer, ISACA

[ISACA]