Cybersecurity Gap: Next Generation Training

Technological advances are developing rapidly, but the ability of the population to use these new opportunities continues to lag behind. The growing number of cybersecurity attacks in recent times indicates a second shortcoming; A shortage of skilled cyber security professionals is projected to reach about 1.8 million workers by 2022.

There are many proposals and ideas on how to bridge the gap, for example, by improving the skills of working employees or using automation systems. But a long-term strategy oriented towards the preparation and training of the next generation will help to ensure in the future a sufficient number of personnel with the necessary skills.

Children are now growing up in the digital age, and therefore they are in an ideal position and have more opportunities to gain knowledge and find solutions to cybersecurity issues that will have a positive effect on their employment in the future. This early introduction to technology and advanced techniques helps to provide them with an excellent opportunity to learn the skills they need to fill the gaps in the cybersecurity industry. But how to attract them into this area, which many consider eccentric?
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Labor market diversity

As in any industry, attracting a diverse workforce to the IT industry is essential for creating a highly efficient cybersecurity sector. The number of women in this field is extremely small, it is only 7 percent of the total number of employees in Europe, but the total number of working women is at least 40 percent of the total workforce in many countries. Therefore, attracting more female employees to this profession will help reduce the number gap.

Ensuring cybersecurity as part of the curriculum

In 2014, the UK became the first country of the Big Seven, which made computer science a compulsory subject at school - students should be able to write and debug computer programs by the age of seven. It is important that we educate society on a large scale through the national curriculum, which will provide each person with a certain level of knowledge and qualifications, so that more people continue to develop the knowledge they need. It also gives teachers the opportunity to identify the talents of children at an early stage and improve them. Intensive training for talented young people is already taking place in clubs, the main topic of which is cybersecurity.

Getting technical skills to solve the tasks

Understanding both network and computer fundamentals is an integral part of providing young people with employment opportunities in the cybersecurity industry. At the San Diego training camp for high school students, whose main focus is on cybersecurity, this topic was covered in a basic network architecture course. Strengthening these fundamental skills in young people guarantees a reduction in the number of gaps in their knowledge, which gives us the possibility of higher and more skilled protection against potential hacker attacks. Seminars on malware, coding and encryption should be included in the standard curriculum so that students have a wide range of knowledge and understanding in this field. More in-depth training is focused on young people who demonstrate their talent in the field of computer science. It is also important to consider other aspects in the cybersecurity industry, such as law enforcement, for example.

The importance of communication skills

Of course, technical knowledge is needed. However, communication skills should not be overlooked, as they are considered no less important in this industry. At the same time, while this topic is under consideration, it is necessary that cybersecurity experts develop the reasonable and moral standards necessary for effective work in this industry.

The solution to bridging the cybersecurity skills gap is to educate not only professionals in this field, but also educate the entire population, by training the next generation and universal understanding of computer security. There is no doubt that with the right curriculum, the brightest and most talented people will be attracted to the fantastic opportunities that exist in the cybersecurity industry.