CompTIA Newsroom

More than 313,000 cyber job postings in private and public sectors, according to free career resource from NIST, Burning Glass and CompTIA

Miami – Employer demand for cybersecurity professionals across the United State continues to accelerate, according to new data published today on CyberSeek™, the leading source of actionable data on supply and demand in the nation’s cybersecurity job market.

U.S. employers in the private and public sectors posted an estimated 313,735 job openings for cybersecurity workers between September 2017 and August 2018. That’s in addition to the 715,000-plus cybersecurity workers currently employed around the country.

“Increasingly, governments and businesses are working to build better defense against cyber attacks, but training programs are simply not producing enough cybersecurity talent to keep up with demand and to keep data-driven enterprises safe,” said Matthew Sigelman, CEO of Burning Glass Technologies.

The new data from CyberSeek was released in conjunction with the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE) Conference hosted in Miami by NICE, a program of the National Institute of Standards and Technology in the U.S. Department of Commerce.

CyberSeek was created by CompTIA and Burning Glass Technologies through a grant awarded by NIST, a non-regulatory agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce.

The new CyberSeek data shows that the cybersecurity job market has tightened. Across all occupations in the U.S. economy there are currently 5.8 employed workers for every job opening. Within the cybersecurity realm, the ratio of existing cybersecurity workers to the number of cybersecurity job openings is 2.3. That means employers have fewer opportunities to “poach” cybersecurity workers from other companies; and must look to other tactics – cyber training for current workers, or attracting new talent, for example – to fill their needs for cybersecurity professionals.

“Efforts to address the shortage of cybersecurity workers are underway on many fronts, but progress has been frustratingly slow,” said Todd Thibodeaux, president and CEO, CompTIA. “The threats are real and growing, with the potential to impact the livelihood of any organization. Our current cybersecurity workforce is doing what it can to keep us protected. It’s critical for private sector companies and public sector agencies to take the actions necessary to bring more people into the cybersecurity workforce, and to equip them with the appropriate education, training and certifications.”

In-demand cybersecurity roles

CyberSeek is aligned with NIST’s NICE Cybersecurity Workforce Framework, providing unprecedented visibility into the job roles most in demand. The latest update reveals that positions in Operate & Maintain (207,190 openings), Securely Provision (186,864), Protect & Defend (129,716), and Analyze (124,389) are the most sought after by employers.

Among specific core jobs, the top five by employer demand are cybersecurity engineer, cybersecurity analyst, cybersecurity manager/administrator, cybersecurity consultant, and penetration and vulnerability tester.

The Washington, D.C., metropolitan area has the largest number of job openings for cybersecurity professionals (44,058). Rounding out the top five metro areas are New York City (20,243), Dallas (12,062), Chicago (11,201), and Los Angeles (10,589)

CyberSeek career resources

Beyond the comprehensive supply-and-demand data, CyberSeek also features an interactive career pathway, showing key jobs within cybersecurity, common transition opportunities between them, and detailed information about the salaries, credentials, and skillsets associated with each role.

For example, average salaries for core cybersecurity jobs range from $75,000 for a cybersecurity specialist/technician to $129,000 for a cybersecurity architect.

CyberSeek can support local employers, educators, guidance and career counselors, students, current workers, policy makers, and other stakeholders interested in building and maintaining the U.S. cybersecurity workforce. Visit https://www.cyberseek.org/.

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About Burning Glass Technologies
Burning Glass Technologies delivers job market analytics that empower employers, workers, and educators to make data-driven decisions. The company’s artificial intelligence technology analyzes hundreds of millions of job postings and real-life career transitions to provide insight into labor market patterns. This real-time strategic intelligence offers crucial insights, such as which jobs are most in demand, the specific skills employers need, and the career directions that offer the highest potential for workers. For more information, visit burning-glass.com.

About CompTIA
The Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) is a leading voice and advocate for the $1.5 trillion U.S. information technology ecosystem; and the 11.5 million technology and business professionals who design, implement, manage, market, and safeguard the technology that powers the U.S. economy. Through education, training, certifications, advocacy, philanthropy, and market research, CompTIA is the hub for advancing the tech industry and its workforce. Visit www.comptia.org to learn more.

Contacts:

Scott Bittle
Burning Glass Technologies
+1 (617) 804-1549  
sbittle@burning-glass.com

Steven Ostrowski
CompTIA
+1 (630) 678-8468
sostrowski@comptia.org­