Despite Increases In Cybercrime And Growing Skills Gap, Most Americans Aren’t Interested In Cybersecurity Careers, Survey Finds (NAPSA)—The United States has experienced a constant uptick in personal and business data breaches in recent years, according to a report by Symantec.’ Consequently, companies are in- creasing cybersecurity spending, which is expectedto grow to nearly $100 billion in 2018, up seven percent from last year, technology research firm Gartnerfinds.” To keep pace with cyberattacks, a more robust workforce ofskilled cyber- security professionalsis vital. In fact, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that career growth for cybersecurity professionals is increasing nearly three times as fast as the national average compared to the growth rate of other careers.’ There are currently nearly 300,000 open cybersecurity jobs, per Cyberseek.* What's more, cybersecurity research company Cybersecurity Ventures pre- dicts 3.5 million cybersecurity jobs are expected to go unfulfilled by 2021. Despite this workforce shortage, a new survey by University of Phoenix’s College of Information Systems & Technology found that only 18 percent of U.S. adults surveyed expressed an interest in a career in cybersecurity.” A meager one percent of respondents to the survey actually work in the industry. Dennis Bonilla, executive dean of the University’s College of Information Systems & Technology and Schoolof Business, called the trend “distressing.” “The nation may soonfinditself unable to keep pace with the numberofat- Anyonelooking for a new or alternate career should be glad to learn cybersecurity is a field with many job openings for those with the skills and knowledgeto fill them. and large retail attacks, have exposed millions of personal records. Additional attacks may be looming, Bonilla warns. Hesaid the solutionis increased awareness and a workforce that is trained not only on how to use the technologies companies have invested in but also how to think strategically to stay ahead of attackers. “Cybersecurity is a career of the future. Unfortunately, what we are doing now to grow the workforce is not working,’ he said. “We need to approach cybersecurity education differently and this starts with changing the perception, makingit more inclusive andenticing to everyone. Only then are we going to see a shift where thesecritical positions of data protectionarefilled” According to Bonilla, cybersecurity education should start as early as kindergarten to encourage younger genera- tacks ifwe cannot bolster the workforce,” tions to pursue careers in cybersecurity. combat hackersfor the time being. But, er industries, such as education, construction andretail, can use the expe- Bonilla said. “Companies are pouring moneyinto solutions, which is helping if we do not increase the workforce by implementing more effective education and training programs, the money spent on technologiesis useless if there are not enoughtrained professionals to operate them. Without these professionals, it is akin to restaurants purchasing food but not hiring chefs.” ‘The University of Phoenix survey found that nearly half (43 percent) of U.S. adults have experienced a personal data breach in the past three years. As a result, only 24 percent said they feel more secure from cyberattacks today than they did five years ago. Forty-six percent feel less secure, while the perception of 30 percent of respondents has not changedin thelastfive years. In addition to a lack of personalcy- Healsosaid that people working in othrience and expertise from their careers along with cybersecurity education to lay the groundwork for a new career. Unfortunately, despite the need for trained professionals, the majority of respondents to the University of Phoenix survey said that they do not have any interest in seeking a job in cybersecurity. Nearlyall said they would need more education to get a job in thefield, but the survey found that the top barriers preventing Americans from pursuing an education or career in cybersecurity include time (52 percent), cost (50 percent) and a lack of knowledge (42 percent). For people interested in a cyber ed- ucation or career, University of Phoe- bersecurity, more than half (56 percent) nix’s College of Information Systems & Technology prepares cyber professionals to combat increasing cybercrimes. ‘The cal and voter records, credit bureau data and master’s degrees that teach the risk management and information assurance skills vital to an organization's success. of those surveyed feel the country as a wholeis also less secure than five years ago. Large data breaches, such as medi- University offers associate, bachelor’s * hitps://www.symantec.com/content/dam/sy mantec/docs/reports/gistr22-government-report.pdf ? http://wwwgartner.com/newsroom/id/3784965 * hitps://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/information-security-analysts.htm#tab-6 * http://cyberseek.org/heatmap.himl https://cybersecurity ventures.com/jobs http://wwwgartner.com/newsroom/id/3784965 ” This survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Poll on behalfof University ofPhoenix between August 24 and September 1, 2017 among 2012 USadults, including 944 who say they have experienced a personal data breach in the past 3 years. Figures for age, race/ethnicity, education, region, and household income were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjustfor respondents’ propensity to be online. For more information, please contact cooper.nelson@phoenix.edu.