ISC-Booz Allen Report: Women Constitute 10% of Info Security Workforce

A new report by Booz Allen Hamilton and not-for-profit ISC says women make up only 10 percent of the information security workforce and have a lower average salary than that of men when it comes to governance, risk and compliance roles.

Frost & Sullivan polled nearly 14,000 data security professionals for the Women in Security: Wisely Positioned for the Future of InfoSec report and found that female information security executives dominate the sector’s GRC subgroup.

The report also found that nearly 60 percent of women in the information security field have either master’s or doctorate degrees compared with 47 percent of men.

“The adaptive nature of cyber threats demands a talent management strategy that will broaden the skillsets and knowledge of the information security profession,” said Angie Messer, executive vice president for predictive intelligence within Booz Allen’s strategic innovation group.

“We must demonstrate to young women thinking about entering the industry the many opportunities that await them and reinforce for those currently working in cybersecurity that they have bright futures ahead.”