A new report claims that nearly half of women working in cybersecurity believe COVID-19 has affected their career in a positive way.听
A听听from human layer security company听Tessian, published on International Women鈥檚 Day, says 49% held the view, with听just听9% saying it has had a negative effect.听
In fact, cybersecurity jobs appear to have weathered the pandemic storm as 94 per cent of women in cybersecurity said they recruited new staff members to help support their team in 2020.听听
In addition, 89 per cent of women working in the industry reported feeling secure in their jobs.听
Despite the industry offering promising opportunities, there is still plenty of work to be done to encourage younger women to consider a career in cybersecurity. As part of the report,听Tessian听surveyed university graduates aged 18-25 years old and found that men in this age group were more likely to consider a job in cybersecurity 鈥� 42 per cent versus 26 per cent of women.听听
However,听87 per cent of younger women said that they found the industry 鈥渋mportant鈥� and 73 per cent said it was 鈥渋nteresting鈥�.听
When female cybersecurity professionals were asked what would encourage more women into cybersecurity roles, equal pay topped the list with 47 per cent of respondents saying this would help bridge the gender gap. This was closely followed by 鈥渕ore female diverse models鈥� (44 per cent), 鈥渁 gender-balanced workforce鈥� (43 per cent) and 鈥渁 greater emphasis on STEM subjects in schools鈥� (41 per cent).听
A significant percentage of Generation Z respondents were, however, on the fence when it came to considering a career in cybersecurity. Nearly half (45 per cent) are not sure whether cybersecurity is the career for them and when asked why, many are worried that they don鈥檛 have the skills needed to thrive, while others are not sure how to navigate a career change.听
Encouraging greater gender diversity in cybersecurity would have huge benefits, though. A previous听Tessian听revealed that an additional 拢4.4 billion would be added to the UK economy if the number of women working in cybersecurity rose to equal that of men.听
鈥淭he women in our report have spoken; cybersecurity听is听an industry to build a thriving career, even in a global听pandemic, and the younger generation recognises that it鈥檚 important,鈥� said听Tessian听CFO and acting head of talent听Sabrina Castiglione.听
鈥�So now we need to show more women and girls how they can explore the opportunities available to them.听
鈥淕reater awareness in schools is critical but businesses, too, can help build a more diverse talent pool for the future through initiatives like hiring more diverse candidates at junior levels and developing them into senior roles, and creating platforms for role models to share their stories.听听
鈥�We won鈥檛 solve the gender gap overnight. But acting now and playing the long game will have enormous benefits – both for businesses and society.鈥�