Women in Cyber Take the Spotlight
Summary
As the cybersecurity industry continues to struggle to meet a workforce gap – an estimated 3.5 million jobs are expected to remain unfilled by 2021 – it’s clear that encouraging women and those from diverse backgrounds to pursue careers in the field will be a key factor in staying ahead of the threat landscape. Changes at the RSA conference, scheduled for early March in San Francisco, along with a handful of large companies stepping up to the plate with training and recruitment efforts, show that the industry may finally be getting serious about addressing the issue. The honorees come from a wide range of sectors, including enterprise and consumer technology, gaming, artificial intelligence, aerospace and biotech, among others. Beginning in January, female entrepreneurs and programmers will attend two-week tutorial sessions at the company’s Cupertino headquarters; these will run every three months. These and other industry efforts are important in dispelling the stereotypes that exist around cyber and tech jobs – a key factor in the lack of diversity.
