Tech-savvy locals urged to fill up cybersecurity labor shortage
There are a lot of opportunities waiting in cybersecurity, with some 3.5 million cybersecurity jobs available worldwide
A stakeholder in the cybersecurity industry said Filipino business enthusiasts or those savvies in the said field should take advantage of the booming cybersecurity market and fill the shortage of practitioners, as cybersecurity is expected to grow in the coming years.
During a webinar titled “Advancing your Company’s Cybersecurity Culture” organized by the British Chamber of Commerce Philippines, Michael Page Philippines consultant George Dumatol said there are a lot of opportunities awaiting in cybersecurity, revealing that there are around 3.5 million cybersecurity jobs open worldwide.
Further, he stressed that it is an advantage to hire potential talents and critical people as well as value transferable skills that align with the company’s culture building.
“In terms of digitalization, there has been a lot of innovation, transformation, and new technologies — it can somehow be a double-edged sword,” said Dumatol.
Gracing the said online forum was United Kingdom’s award-winning cybersecurity services and consultancy company, CyberQ Group’s Asia Pacific CEO Roberto Tayag, who relayed during the discussion that there are risks and vulnerabilities involved from a cybersecurity standpoint.
Tayag said “cybersecurity is like an insurance policy” and it must be taken care of.
For the side of the government, the webinar was attended by Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Deputy Director Maricris Salud who presented the BPI’s plans and activities in pushing for digitization.
Cybersecurity a very important issue
For his part, British Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines president Chris Nelson maintained that cybersecurity is a very important issue in the Philippines in the UK and across the world.
“We are very happy to have BSP presented on their efforts and activities. Our member CyberQ highlighted the need for all companies to have a cybersecurity plan. In that context, think of our cybersecurity as an insurance policy,” Nelson said.
“Everyone needs to be aware of cybersecurity and the British Chamber will continue to highlight the efforts of the Philippine Government, particularly the BSP, and members such as CyberQ and Michael Page on this key issue,” he added.
The cybersecurity market is a niche where there is more demand than supply, and companies must look into better innovation and increased cybersecurity awareness.
By 2028, the global market is expected to grow to $372.04 billion.
A recent study by Palo Alto Networks said that cyberattacks across industries last year are a sharp escalation to the disruptive threats facing businesses.
In 2022, cybercriminals targeted critical infrastructure with ransomware attacks and continued to find new ways to exploit the cryptocurrency boom, hybrid working, and, more recently, unsecured Application Programming Interface.
Incidents and data breaches
Per Palo Alto Networks’ latest ‘What’s Next in Cyber Survey,’ almost all respondents admitted their organization experienced cybersecurity incidents and data breaches in the past year, 11 on average.
However, a cause of concern is that only 2 in 5 say their board’s recognition of cyber risk has increased significantly alongside accelerated digitalization strategies.
Palo Alto Networks’ 2023 APAC cybersecurity predictions feature the top five insights from our leaders to help organizations pursue a more secure future. In cybersecurity, predictions are highly relevant because, apart from the attacker’s behaviors, they consider a broad view- from technology to workplace trends and evolving laws and regulations.
Steven Scheurmann, regional vice president for ASEAN, Palo Alto Networks, said, “The fluidity of today’s cyberattacks will require business leaders to reimagine their cybersecurity approach constantly.