50+ Cyber Security Job Statistics & Trends for 2024

Which locations have the most cyber security job openings? What are the most in-demand specializations? Am I getting a fair salary? How should I map my potential career trajectory? These are exactly the types of questions that the latest cyber security job statistics can help you answer. 

New and emerging trends - e.g., cloud computing, remote working, and increased use of artificial intelligence - give rise to fresh cyber threats and new skill demands from employers. Keep an eye on what’s most needed, and you can better identify the capabilities and credentials most valued in the job market. 

With all of this in mind, here’s a rundown of the key cyber security job statistics and trends for 2024. 

Current State of Cyber Security Employment 

Cyber security job statistics illustrate that the number of cyber roles continues to increase across all regions. What’s more, even with the current economic headwinds, businesses still see cyber as a critical priority for investment. 

The Size and Growth of the Global Cyber Security Workforce

1. In 2023, ISC2 estimated the size of the global cyber security workforce at 5.5 million.  

2. Between 2022 and 2023, the cyber security workforce grew by 8.7%, representing nearly 440,000 new positions. 

3. All regions saw annual growth in cyber workforce size in 2023. The strongest growth was in the Middle East / Africa and Asia-Pacific regions, where the workforce increased year-on-year by 11.7% and 11.8% respectively. 

Location of Cyber Security Jobs 

4. The United States has the world’s largest cyber security workforce, estimated at 1.33 million. 

5. The size of the US cyber workforce has increased by 59% since 2010. 

Cyber Security Staffing as a part of Employers’ Wider Cyber Security Spending 

6. The global cyber security market size was valued at $197 billion in 2021. It is predicted to reach $657 billion by 2030, with a CAGR of 12.8% from 2022 to 2030. 

7. On average, businesses spend 38% of their overall security budget on staff and compensation. 

8. Businesses that are fully based in the cloud spend almost half (47%) of their security budgets on staff. 

9. In 2023, many companies worldwide reduced their tech spending due to wider economic pressures. However, despite this, cyber security budgets continued to rise, albeit at a slower pace compared to previous years. 

10. In 2023, cyber security budgets increased, on average, by 6%. 

Salary Trends in Cyber Security 

Salaries for cyber positions continue to climb. Median salaries are the highest in North America. However, on a country-by-country basis, the cyber security job statistics show that eight of the top ten nations for the best salaries are all in Europe. 

Average Salaries for Cyber Security Roles 

11. Based on the Global InfoSec / Cybersecurity Salary Index, here’s a rundown of global median salaries for various roles for 2023, 2022, and 2021:   

Median Global Salaries for InfoSec / Cybersecurity Roles by Year ($US)
(‘n/a’ denotes no data available for that particular role/year)

Rank	Role	Median Salary in 2023	Median Salary in 2022	Median Salary in 2021
1	Head of Security	245,000	210,000	193,500
2	Information Security Officer	202,250	196,810	168,581
3	Information Security Program Manager	202,000	n/a	137,800
4	Detection Engineer	193,500	200,000	n/a
5	Security Operations Engineer	180,000	n/a	n/a
6	Security Software Engineer	172,000	n/a	n/a
7	Director of Information Security	171,500	180,000	n/a
8	Cloud Security Architect	170,000	185,000	n/a
9	Cyber Security Architect	169,000	145,000	127,000
10	Penetration Testing Engineer	168,430	150,000	127,000
11	Security Engineer	168,400	155,000	119,643
12	Security Architect	166,230	n/a	122,102
13	Information Security Manager	162,000	128,500	122,290
14	Security Compliance Manager	155,100	n/a	n/a
15	IAM Engineer	153,900	n/a	n/a
16	Threat Intelligence Analyst	153,000	139,400	140,000
17	Software Reverse Engineer	150,000	n/a	n/a
18	Security Researcher	147,750	147,100	125,000
19	Malware Reverse Engineer	147,100	n/a	n/a
20	GRC Analyst	143,675	n/a	n/a
21	Compliance Manager	141,400	n/a	n/a
22	Information Security Specialist	140,000	n/a	92,000
23	DevSecOps Engineer	140,000	119,700	n/a
24	Compliance Specialist	140,000	n/a	n/a
25	Professional Services Consultant	138,800	n/a	n/a
26	Security Lead	135,750	142,200	n/a
27	Information Systems Security Officer	135,000	101,600	n/a
28	Head of Information Security	135,000	153,376	122,290
29	Privacy Manager	132,500	124,000	n/a
30	Information System Security Officer	128,575	101,600	n/a
31	Threat Hunter	127,550	n/a	n/a
32	Security Consultant	125,000	117,250	n/a
33	IT Security Manager	123,040	110,000	n/a
34	Security Analyst	116,392	105,400	75,000
35	Cyber Engineer	115,400	n/a	105,175
36	Incident Response Analyst	114,500	123,031	n/a
37	Compliance Analyst	113,387	86,500	n/a
38	Technical Consultant	113,100	n/a	n/a
39	Cyber Security Manager	110,716	n/a	n/a
40	SOC Analyst	106,000	88,496	63,405
41	Cyber Security Engineer	102,085	99,859	105,175
42	Information Security Analyst	100,000	84,583	81,123
43	Cyber Security Specialist	95,000	79,000	71,030
44	Penetration Tester	94,650	116,400	100,000
45	Security Specialist	84,350	79,000	92,000
46	Cyber Security Analyst	80,000	73,546	80,000
47	Cyber Threat Intelligence Analyst	70,100	93,500	113,000
48	Application Security Engineer	50,000	88,653	70,000

Cyber Security Salaries by Location 

12. North America had one of the highest salaries for cyber security professionals in 2022.

Median Salary Earned by Cyber Security Professionals in 2022, by Region

Region	Median Salary (USD)
North America	134,800
EMEA	93,535
APAC	59,379
LATAM	22,185

13. In 2023, financial website Insider Monkey identified the countries with the highest demand for cyber security professionals, before ranking the 15 with the highest average salaries (based on Economic Research Institute data), with Switzerland ranking number one. The results are as follows: 

The 15 top ranking countries for cyber security salaries

Rank	Country	Average Salary ($US)
1	Switzerland	151,305
2	Luxembourg	131,414
3	United Kingdom	127,502
4	Denmark	125,839
5	United States	118,812
6	Norway	109,418
7	Netherlands	105,963
8	Belgium	104,150
9	Canada	103,796
10	Germany	102,181
11	Australia	100,640
12	Finland	100,299
13	Austria	97,562
14	Singapore	96,794
15	UAE	96,656

Supply and Demand in Cyber Security Employment 

The cyber skills gap continues to make its presence felt in the overall jobs market. Tip: for a more in-depth look at this and what it might mean for your career, check out our guide, Is the Cyber Security Gap a Myth?  

The Global Cyber Security Skills Gap 

14. In 2023, an estimated 4 million extra cyber security workers are needed to meet the needs of employers. This labor gap increased by 12.6% compared to 2022. 

15. 67% of organizations worldwide report a staff shortage, impacting their ability to prevent and troubleshoot cyber security issues. 

16. Cyber labor shortages are most prevalent in the education and government sectors. 78% of organizations within these sectors report cyber security staffing shortages.

17. Of organizations with a shortage of cyber security staff in 2023, the inability to find enough qualified talent was the most frequently mentioned reason, cited by 41% of security leaders. 

18. In 2023, 48% of respondents at organizations that don’t offer competitive salaries have significant skill gaps, compared with 31% of those organizations that do offer competitive compensation. 

19. The 2023 Fortinet Cybersecurity Skills Gap Report suggests that 56% of organizations struggle to recruit and 54% struggle to retain cyber talent. 

20. 83% of executive boards were focused on increasing cyber security headcount in 2022, compared to 76% in 2021. 

21. The shortage of talent makes recruitment a long and difficult process for employers. One in five hiring managers say it takes more than six months to find qualified cyber security candidates for open positions.

22. In 2022, ISACA found that 60% of hiring managers were experiencing difficulties in retaining qualified cyber security professionals, up seven percentage points from the year before. 

23. 90% of security leaders believe a skills shortage has impacted their ability to implement their cyber security strategy. 

Cyber Security Supply and Demand in Different Locations

24. A cyber security workforce gap exists across all global regions. It is highest in the Asia-Pacific region, where an extra ~2.6 million security professionals are currently needed to match employee demand. This gap increased by 23.4% between 2022 and 2023. 

25. In Latin America, there was an estimated 32.5% narrowing of the cyber security workforce gap between 2022 and 2023. However, there is still a shortage of ~350,000 cyber professionals. 

Educational and Certification Trends 

The cyber security job statistics suggest that hirers are becoming more open-minded when it comes to identifying talent. For many businesses, a college degree is no longer a must-have - although certifications are becoming more sought-after than ever.  

Higher Education Requirements for Cyber Security Jobs 

26. Globally, 45% of hiring managers agree that their organization relies too heavily on education/degrees when looking for cyber security applicants. 

27. When hiring for entry-level cybersecurity roles, 70% of security leaders say they would value entry-level cyber experience (1-3 years) over entry-level education (e.g., a bachelor’s degree). 

28. When hiring for senior-level cybersecurity roles, 86% of security leaders say they would value extensive cyber security experience (10+ years) over an advanced doctoral degree. 

Certification Requirements for Cyber Security Jobs 

29. In 2022, 90% of leaders said they prefer to hire people with certifications, up from 81% in 2021. 

30. 72% of leaders said that hiring certified people has increased security and awareness within the organization. 

31. For hirers, CompTIA Security+ seems to be the most in-demand certification for junior roles. CISSP (Certified Information Systems Security Professional) is the certification most frequently stipulated for more advanced positions. 

32. If asked to design their ideal job candidate, 54% of security professionals would value cyber security certifications over independent competition experience (e.g., hackathon, capture the flag, etc). 

33. If asked to design their ideal job candidate, two-thirds of security professionals would value cyber security certification over a bachelor’s degree in a related field. 

Pathways to Cyber Security Jobs and Workforce Diversity   

34. A growing number of new entrants into cyber security are joining the profession at an advanced stage in their working life. In 2023, 16% of new starters were aged 50-59, compared to 8% in 2021. 

35. 80% of cyber security professionals agree that there are more pathways into cyber security today than there were in the past. 82% say that this is a positive for the industry. 

36. 59% of hiring managers say that they are seeing an increase in job applications from technically experienced people without cyber security experience. 

37. In 2023, 51% of hiring managers said they are changing their hiring requirements to recruit more people from non-cyber backgrounds. 

38. Across all global regions, more than three-quarters of organizations have diversity hiring goals in place. 

39. Women held 25% of cyber security jobs globally in 2022, up from 20% in 2019, and around 10% in 2013. 

40. Women are predicted to represent 30% of the global cyber security workforce by 2025, rising to 35% by 3031. 

Cyber Security Careers with the Most Openings

With so many businesses moving their IT estates to the cloud, it’s hardly surprising that knowledge in this area is so sought-after. If you need to top up your credentials in this area, take a look at our guide, The Best Cloud Security Certifications to Boost Your Career.  

41. According to Fortinet’s global study, cloud security is currently top of the list of the most needed cyber security skills, as well as being the hardest to fill roles for organizations. 

42. A study by ISC2 also shows cloud security as the top requested and most in-demand skill.

Changes in the Cyber Security Job Market 

Businesses across the globe are adopting a range of technologies that fall under the broad umbrella of AI. This includes things like advanced data analytics, machine learning, and automation. To futureproof your career in cyber security, this specialism is definitely one to watch. 

New Working Models 

43. COVID-19 prompted many organizations to alter their working practices, with a proliferation of remote and hybrid working models, more complex and scattered IT estates, and greater reliance on the cloud. 

44. In 2023, 45% of security leaders agree or strongly agree that obtaining cyber security investment has been easier since the pandemic.  

45. ISC2 found that at the height of the pandemic, around 44% of cyber security professionals were working remotely. This decreased to 33% in 2022. 

Economic Uncertainty and Its Short-Term Impact on the Cyber Security Jobs Market 

46. Globally, there have been an estimated 240,000 layoffs in the tech sector in 2023. 

47. 47% of cyber security professionals say they have had layoffs elsewhere in their organization but not in cyber security. 

48. 38% expect layoffs in cyber security over the next 12 months. 

49. In 2023, 72% of cyber security leaders felt that recent global events have had a ‘major’ or ‘moderate’ impact on their organization’s risk profile. This may help make cyber security more resilient to budget cuts than other areas of tech. 

50. 52% of hiring managers agree that widespread layoffs elsewhere in the tech sector provide an opportunity to get more people involved in cyber security. 

Growth of AI and Its Impact on Cyber Security Job Statistics 

51. At the start of 2024, 25% of companies have artificial intelligence (AI) in play. A further 32% plan to adopt AI within the next two years. 

52. In 2023, the ISC2 Cybersecurity Workforce Study listed AI and Machine Learning among the top five categories for in-demand cyber security skills, cited by 28% of security managers. As recently as the 2022 study, this area did not make the top ten, indicating a rapid increase in demand for skills in this area. 

Conclusion

For many tech professionals, the last couple of years have been worrying. Faced with a difficult economic climate, businesses have been forced to cut back on their tech spending, which has meant budget cuts - accompanied in many cases by layoffs. 

Cyber security isn’t totally immune to this. However, the cyber security job statistics show that the jobs market in this area remains remarkably buoyant. Whereas discretionary projects are prime targets for cuts, cyber security measures aren’t something businesses can afford to put on ice. 

The continued existence of the cyber skills gap - along with a relentless stream of new and emerging threats and security breaches - means that the cyber security jobs market looks set to remain strong for the foreseeable future.

If you're looking to enter the cyber security job market, a StationX Membership can help. Access to mentors, custom career and certification roadmaps, courses, practice labs, and a supportive community can put your career into high gear. Join today!

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