Technological advancements are increasing rapidly,
but the general population’s ability to utilize these new capabilities
continues to lag behind. The growing number of recent cybersecurity attacks
highlights a second gap; a shortage of skilled workforce in the cybersecurity industry,
predicted to reach around 1.8 million workers by 2022.
There are numerous suggestions and ideas about how
to close the gap, such as upskilling existing employees skill sets or utilizing
automation. But a long-term strategy focused on training and educating the next
generation will help to ensure enough people have the right skills for the
future.
Children are now growing up in a digital age and
should be in an ideal position and better equipped to take on the challenges of
cybersecurity when they enter the workforce. This early exposure to the
technology and best practices could easily be harnessed to give them a golden
opportunity to be trained in the skills needed to fill the gap in the
cybersecurity industry. But how do we to attract them into what many consider a
geeky industry?
Diversity in the workforce
As with any industry, ensuring that cybersecurity
attracts a diverse workforce is important in building a high-performing
cybersecurity sector. The number of women in the cybersecurity industry is
extremely low, accounting for just 7% of the industry’s workforce in Europe, yet women make up at
least 40% of the general workforce in many countries. Attracting
more women to the profession will create a more diverse workforce and help to
reduce the numbers gap.
Making cybersecurity part of the curriculum
In 2014, Britain became the first G7 country to make computer science a compulsory subject at school –
students should be able to write and debug a program by age seven. It’s
important that we educate society broadly through a national curriculum that
will ensure everyone possesses a certain skill level so that more people go on
to develop the necessary expertise. This also give educators the opportunity to
identify talent early on and hone in on it. Organizing intensive training for
talented youngsters is already taking place with cybersecurity style clubs.
Hard skills to address
Understanding both network and computer basics is
integral to giving youngsters a successful foundation in cybersecurity. At a
cybersecurity boot camp run for high school students in San Diego, this
topic was addressed through a foundation class in network architecture.
Instilling these fundamental skills in young people ensures fewer knowledge
gaps making us less vulnerable when protecting ourselves from would-be hackers.
Workshops on malware, coding and encryption should be included as
standard so that young people have a broad range of knowledge and
understanding. More specific training, perhaps targeted at young people who
demonstrate talent in computer science. It is also important to include other
perspectives on cybersecurity, such as law enforcement.
The importance of softer skills
Technical knowledge is, of course, imperative.
However communication skills shouldn’t be overlooked and are often thought of
as highly important in the industry. While a big topic to
address, it’s important to ensure cybersecurity professionals develop the
mind-set and moral code required to work effectively in this industry.
The answer to bridging the cybersecurity skills gap
is education, not just for potential security experts of the future, but for
all — by training the next generation and ensuring everyone has a solid
understanding of computer security. There is little doubt that with the right
curriculum and opportunities, the brightest and most talented individuals will
be attracted to the fantastic opportunities that exist in the cybersecurity
industry.