Ramona Adams
A study commissioned by Raytheon and the National Cyber Security Alliance indicates cyber threats against the U.S. presidential election have helped boost interest in cybersecurity careers among young adults.
Raytheon said Wednesday Zogby Analytics conducted the “Securing Our Future: Closing the Cybersecurity Talent Gap” survey which involves 3,779 respondents aged 18 to 26 from the U.S. and worldwide.
“Millennials see hacktivists breaking into computer systems and threatening our economy,” said Dave Wajsgras, president of Raytheon’s intelligence, information and services business segment.
“If we can show young men and women a clear path to careers in cybersecurity, we can make real progress in eliminating the serious cyber talent shortage and making our country more secure,” Wajsgras added.
The survey found that the number of young adults in the U.S. who claimed to have read or heard news of cyber attacks within the last year increased from 36 percent in 2015 to 64 percent in 2016.
Fifty-three percent of young adults in the U.S. say that a political candidate’s stance on cybersecurity affects their level of support for that candidate and 50 percent of respondents believe cybersecurity has not been a big enough part of discussions ahead of the elections.
The report also found 59 percent of men and 51 percent of women among the global respondents said they received formal cyber safety lessons in 2016 compared to 43 percent of men and 40 percent of women who did in 2015.
Fifty-four percent of men and 36 percent of women worldwide said they knew the tasks involved in cybersecurity jobs — which reflects an increase from 37 percent of men and 28 percent of women in 2015.
Globally, 37 percent of young adults are more likely than a year ago to consider a career related to internet security compared to 28 percent in 2015.
The survey also included respondents from Australia, Estonia, France, Germany, Japan, Poland, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, U.K. and the United Arab Emirates.
