Cybersecurity: mind the gap [promoted]

Loading player...
Huge skills gaps in the cybersecurity sector mean that self-starters who upskill themselves now could quickly put themselves on rewarding and lucrative career paths.
TechCentral chatted in this podcast to Anna Collard, senior vice president of content strategy and evangelist at KnowBe4 Africa, about the company’s recent Cyber Security Skills Pipeline survey and what to do about the opportunity.
Collard, a seasoned cybersecurity specialist and advisor, said the responses to the survey revealed some startling challenges across all industries, the greatest being the lack of qualified candidates with the right aptitude and level of experience.
Said Collard: “On the one hand, we have massive youth unemployment; on the other, we see a cybersecurity skills gap. That’s an opportunity!”
Respondents to the survey showed:
• 56.7% could not find qualified candidates;
• 71.7% could not find candidates with enough practical experience; and
• 50% said candidates did not demonstrate the necessary levels of attitude and aptitude.
Roles organisations most need to fill are:
• Cloud security professionals: 58.3%
• SOC analysts and threat hunting teams: 53.3%
• Risk, governance and compliance professionals: 55%
• Red teaming and offensive security professionals: 48.3%
• Network engineering: 36.7%
• Security culture and awareness professionals: 35%
The solution is to:
• Be a role model. Take on interns and offer young people an opportunity to learn and get experience in this field.
• Look for aptitude and attitude; the technical skills will follow.
• Embrace all opportunities to share and to learn through whatever channel, not necessarily the traditional tertiary institutions, but also micro-learning.
We all have a lot to gain from this conversation and KnowBe4 Africa has certainly exposed the gap. Now, to fill it!
Watch or listen to this fascinating podcast now.
23 May 2022 English South Africa Technology · Business

Other recent episodes

TCS | Charge’s R1.8-billion bet on an off-grid EV future

South Africa has fewer than 400 public electric vehicle charging stations – up from zero just 15 years ago – and EV adoption remains stubbornly slow. Yet Charge, formerly known as Zero Carbon Charge, is betting big that a coast-to-coast network of off-grid, renewable-powered charging stations is exactly what’s needed…
18 May 37 min

TCS+ | The Up&Up Group on the hidden cost of AI

Companies large and small are pouring capital into AI projects, chasing the promise of efficiency, speed and scale. But as Jason Harrison, chief operating officer of The Up&Up Group, argues in this episode of TechCentral’s TCS+, the upfront price tag tells only a fraction of the story – and many…
13 May 46 min

TCS+ | The retirement decision most South Africans get wrong

What happens to your retirement savings when you leave an employer is one of the most consequential financial decisions most South Africans will make – and one of the most commonly mishandled. In this podcast conversation with Mpho Chitapi, 10X Investments senior investment consultant Michael Rossouw sets out what should…
6 May 55 min

TCS | The Cape Town start-up listening for TB with AI

AI Diagnostics, a Cape Town-based med-tech company that has built an AI-powered stethoscope designed to detect tuberculosis, recently raised R85-million in a pre-series-A funding round. In this episode of the TechCentral Show (TCS), Nkosinathi Ndlovu speaks to the company’s CEO, Braden van Breda, about the funding round and its mission…
4 May 36 min