59% of business and IT leaders warned that AI cyber threats are advancing faster than their security team’s expertise to deal with them in 2025.

77% of internal Security Operations Center (SOC) teams reported a skills shortage in penetration testing as of 2025, indicating a significant gap in essential cybersecurity capabilities.

72% of internal Security Operations Center (SOC) teams reported a skills shortage in incident response as of 2025, affecting their ability to effectively manage security incidents.

70% of internal Security Operations Center (SOC) teams reported a skills shortage in data analysis as of 2025, which is crucial for informed decision-making in cybersecurity.

78% of internal Security Operations Center (SOC) teams reported a skills shortage in network security as of 2025, highlighting a critical area of concern for cybersecurity effectiveness.

60% of internal Security Operations Center (SOC) teams reported a skills shortage in threat hunting as of 2025, which is critical for proactive cybersecurity measures.

46% say a lack of skilled staff is the biggest barrier to maturing their insider risk program.

34% of executives at financial services firms said they lack the internal resources or expertise to manage complex IT and security controls.

24% of executives at financial services firms acknowledge that their teams not being trained on incident response processes is a significant weakness that could slow recovery.

16% of executives at financial services firms acknowledge that a lack of experienced IT or security staff is a significant weakness that could slow recovery.

48% of companies are considering certifying current employees for skill improvement.

46% of companies are considering expanding the use of third parties for skill improvement.

47% of respondents surveyed have expert-level skill in application security.

46% of respondents surveyed need significant skill improvement in network/infrastructure security.

50% of respondents surveyed have expert-level skill in network/infrastructure security.

47% of respondents surveyed have expert-level skill in data analysis.

There are 514,000 U.S.-based job openings with cybersecurity-related skills.

49% of respondents surveyed need significant skill improvement in data security.

36% of large companies (500-9999 employees) are concerned with the breadth of skills needed.

37% of very large companies (10000+ employees) are concerned with the breadth of skills needed.