Cybersecurity is fastest growing IT occupation in the UK, reveals Socura report

But skills gap persists with just one security professional for every 86 companies

CARDIFF, Wales, Oct. 2, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Socura, a UK-based cybersecurity services business that protects many of the nation's biggest NHS trusts, councils, and private companies, has released its UK cybersecurity careers 2024 report, 'Their next job was in cyber'. 

The report is released four years after the UK government's infamous 'Fatima' ballet ad promoting cyber as a career option. Based on Office of National Statistics data, it reveals that cybersecurity is now the fastest growing tech occupation in the UK, with the number of people in cyber roles more than doubling (128%) between 2021 and 2024. Despite this growth rate, there are not yet enough cybersecurity professionals to tackle the growing threat to UK businesses, with only one security pro for every 86 companies. 

Other key findings of Socura's report include: 

• There are 4,600 more women in cybersecurity roles in 2024 compared to 2021. However, the percentage of women in cybersecurity roles has decreased and now stands at 17%, down from 24%. 
• London is less of a hub for cybersecurity professionals than it is for other IT professionals. 25% of all IT workers are based in London, compared to 17% of cyber workers.
• Northern Ireland and Wales are the countries in the UK with the fewest cybersecurity professionals. 

"Cybersecurity may be the fastest growing IT occupation in the UK but the skills shortage in the industry remains a concern," said Andy Kays, CEO at Socura. "Many businesses simply do not have the specialists they need to defend against cyber attacks.  

"To fix this problem at a national level, we need more initiatives like the NCSC-backed Academic Centres of Excellence and ways to reach even younger people so that they can discover technology in schools. For organisations struggling to recruit cybersecurity experts, finding a trusted managed services partner to bolster capabilities and ease the load remains vital to bridging the gap." 

"Attracting more workers, particularly women, into cyber remains a key challenge for the industry," said Dr Kathryn Jones, Head of School, Computer Science and Informatics at Cardiff University. "However, gender imbalance and the low representation of women is a wider issue in the tech sector, not only cybersecurity. The number of women enrolled on computer science and software engineering courses, for example, is typically also low.  

"Cybersecurity is an exciting and varied career choice but more initiatives like the NCSC's Cyber First Girls competition are needed to raise awareness." 

Resources 

• Read summary blog
• Download full report 

Methodology
Socura's analysis is based on UK ONS annual population survey data, which tracks occupation figures based on 15 IT-related Standard Occupational Classification (SOC2020) codes such as 2135 cybersecurity professionals. The ONS annual population is a continuous survey that consists of 12 months of survey data, which is broken down and released on a quarterly basis. 

About Socura
Socura reduces cyber risk by proactively detecting and responding to threats, 24/7. Our Managed Detection and Response (MDR) service operates as an extension of an organisation's security team - supplying highly skilled SOC experts and the additional capabilities needed to scale security operations and accelerate response to attacks. 

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SOURCE Socura