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Businesses are seeking cybersecurity professionals—security practitioners who protect systems and data, not people breaking into them—because they need both more security capacity and skills their current teams may not have. The resulting pressure can shape workloads, training, leadership priorities and flexibility inside security teams. Workforce surveys describe those reported conditions, but they do not prove that cybersecurity hiring causes broader changes across every business.
What “high demand” means—and what it doesn’t
Demand is not captured by one number. A workforce estimate counts people working in cybersecurity; a staffing-shortage survey records what respondents say about their organizations; a skills-gap survey asks whether teams have the capabilities they need; job-posting data tracks advertised roles. Those measures answer different questions. In particular, a reported shortage or skills gap is not a count of vacant jobs.
ISC2’s 2024 study estimated a global cybersecurity workforce of 5.5 million, up 0.1% year over year. In that study, 67% of respondents said their organization had a staffing shortage and 90% reported skills gaps on their teams. These are survey findings, not a tally of open positions. ISC2’s 2024 Cybersecurity Workforce Study provides the figures.
In 2025, ISC2 focused on skills shortages and staffing pressure but did not include a workforce-gap estimate. Among respondents, 34% said their organization had the right level of cybersecurity staffing, while 32% said they felt overworked because of shortages. These results should not be read as a direct year-to-year measurement against the 2024 workforce estimate: the measures differ. ISC2’s 2025 study reports the findings.
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More people do not automatically mean the right skills
Cybersecurity work requires a mix of capabilities, and a team can have employees yet still lack expertise in areas it needs. That helps explain why staffing levels and skills gaps are distinct issues: recruiting may add capacity, but it does not guarantee that a team has the right skills or enough time to apply them.
Hiring is only one way to widen capacity
ISC2’s 2025 recommendation is to broaden skills and talent pools, including by investing in existing personnel through multiskilling and skills development. That makes internal training and thoughtful development part of the workforce response, rather than treating external hiring as the only solution. ISC2 says organizations should do this despite budget constraints in its 2025 workforce study.
Older “gap” estimates need their year attached
ISC2’s 2023 study reported that 67% of respondents saw staffing shortages and 92% reported skills gaps; it also said its workforce-gap estimate rose 12.6% year over year. That is historical context, not a current vacancy count or a figure that can be combined into a continuous trend with later studies. ISC2’s 2023 study describes its findings.
How demand can affect security-team culture
Less time for learning and keeping current
In ISC2’s 2025 survey, 28% of respondents said they did not have enough time to stay current on security issues, and 23% reported inadequate training opportunities. When teams are stretched, keeping skills current can compete with immediate operational responsibilities. The survey records respondents’ experiences; it does not establish that shortages alone caused them.
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Responsibilities can spill beyond expertise
Some 22% of respondents said they were responsible for security work outside their area of expertise. This points to a role-boundary challenge: teams may need to cover essential work even when the available expertise does not match every responsibility.
Leadership signals and flexibility matter
In the same study, 23% named leadership failing to prioritize cybersecurity as a critical business function as a source of job dissatisfaction. Another 17% cited a lack of flexible work arrangements. These are respondent-reported reasons for dissatisfaction, not evidence that every organization has the same culture or that either factor affects all workers equally.
Together, the findings show why headcount alone is an incomplete response. Security practitioners also need time to learn, appropriate role boundaries, visible organizational support and workable employment arrangements. The survey describes conditions inside security teams; it does not establish a causal effect on business culture as a whole.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How to assess demand and career paths
For U.S. labor-market indicators and cybersecurity career pathways, NIST points readers to CyberSeek. Its listed data period is May 2024–April 2025, so use the dashboard’s own current dates and definitions when reviewing its metrics rather than treating that period as current indefinitely. NIST’s CyberSeek resource links to the tool. CyberSeek’s U.S. labor-market view and ISC2’s international practitioner surveys are different kinds of evidence, not interchangeable measures.
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For organizations, the evidence supports a two-part response: identify the specific capabilities missing from the team, then decide which needs require recruitment and which can be addressed through training or multiskilling. For workers exploring the field, distinguish advertised roles from broader survey claims about shortages, and examine the skills and pathways relevant to the role and location they want.
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