The need for experts in the field of cyber security is rising as companies face huge financial hits.
Cybersecurity Ventures, a research and market intelligence firm focused on the Cybersecurity industry, announced the unemployment rate for cybersecurity job openings is at zero percent, meaning there is a position available for anyone with experience, according to the firm’s website.
“There may be a small percentage of the cyber workforce who are in between jobs, some who have resigned to pursue new opportunities, and others who are unrealistic about which positions they qualify for (and the compensation commensurate with their experience),” said Steve Morgan, founder and CEO at the firm, “but there’s a job available for everyone with cybersecurity experience.”
And it doesn’t appear the situation is going to change in the near future. The Palo Alto Research Center projects the demand for cyber security professionals will increase to approximately six million jobs around the world, by the year 2019.
Cybersecurity Ventures reported earlier this year there were currently one million job openings in the field, and that number would likely stretch to 1.5 million by 2019.
John McAfee, founder of Future Tense Central, a privacy and security company, echoed the statements by saying, “The field of cyber security is the least populated of any field of technology. There are two job openings for every qualified applicant.”
Cyber-crime damages amounted to some $3 trillion in 2015, and experts say the number will probably reach near $6 trillion across the globe by 2021. They also say the world’s companies will spend over $1 trillion in efforts to combat cyber-crime over the next five years. That would suggest the damage done will likely get a lot worse before it gets better.
Morgan has advice for those college graduates looking to start a career in cybersecurity.
“Recent college grads with cyber degrees and IT workers crossing over to cyber may have over-inflated views of their job prospects,” he offered. “Some of them might need to think about starting out at the bottom rung of the ladder as an information security analyst and then working their way up.”
Daniel J. Brown
Daniel J. Brown (Editor-in-Chief) is a recently retired data analyst who gets a kick out of reading and writing the news. He enjoys good music, great food, and sports, with a slant towards Southern college football, basketball and professional baseball.