Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Welcome! Log in to stay connected and make the most of your experience.

Input clean

The Cybersecurity Skills Shortage

The Cybersecurity Skills Shortage

There is a massive problem in cybersecurity, and it has been growing for years. This problem is not a malicious program, or a rogue nation-state, or angry hackers, but rather a persistent imbalance in the labor market. Simply put, there are not enough cybersecurity professionals in the United States to meet the increasing need for better cybersecurity among American businesses. The lack of qualified cybersecurity personnel has been a problem for years, and it is proving to be more intractable than one might think.  The problem is intensified as companies become more aware of their own vulnerabilities – especially in light of the high-profile network breaches that occurred throughout 2015.

The demand for cybersecurity professionals far outpaces the available supply. According to Jon Olstik from Enterprise Strategy Group, in 2016 “46% of organizations now claim that they have a problematic shortage of cybersecurity skills representing an 18% year-over-year increase.” This means that cybersecurity teams are often understaffed, which makes it even more difficult for them to properly protect their employer’s networks.

Keep reading...Show less
Access all of The Cipher Brief’s national security-focused expert insight by becoming a Cipher Brief Subscriber+ Member.

Related Articles

A Good NATO Summit, Though Russia Won a Round

EXPERT Q&A — NATO leaders convened in The Hague this week for a summit aiming to strengthen the alliance's defenses, with the ever encroaching threat [...] More

NATO Wins Will Have an Impact

CIPHER BRIEF EXPERT Q&A — NATO leaders convened at The Hague this week and agreed to raise the alliance’s defense spending target to 5% GDP, marking [...] More

Dead Drop: June 27

THIS WEEK: SURPRISES, SECRETS AND SPY COCKTAILS: This week’s best collection of national security gossip is filled with surprises, secrets and a [...] More

NATO Lures Trump Back - at a Cost

NATO Lures Trump Back - at a Cost

CIPHER BRIEF REPORTING – The stakes at this week’s NATO summit were sky-high – support for Ukraine, a shoring up of Europe’s defenses, and the [...] More

Report for Friday, June 27, 2025

8:11 America/Chicago Friday, June 27 [...] More

The Zbig Biography: No Small Feat!

BOOK REVIEW: Zbig: The Life of Zbigniew Brzezinski, America's Great Power Prophet by Edward LuceAvid Reader Press / Simon & SchusterReviewed by: [...] More

Report for Thursday, June 26, 2025

8:18 America/Chicago Thursday, June 26 [...] More

North Korea’s Sticking Points: Abduction and Uranium Enrichment

OPINION — In September 2002, North Korea’s supreme leader, Kim Jong-il, admitted to Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi that North Korea had [...] More

Report for Wednesday, June 25, 2025

9:20 AM America/New York Wednesday, June 25 [...] More