Demand For San Francisco Internet Security Experts Exceeds Supply
The digital security sector is growing in leaps and bounds in 2015, due in large part to the increasing threats from hackers going after companies like Sony Pictures, Target and Home Depot. Information security spending reached $71 billion last year and is expected to increase dramatically to $86 billion by the end of 2016. As a result, employment across the industry is skyrocketing for people with a variety of technical and non-technical skills.
The digital security needs of every organization are truly unique, so we're seeing the rise of vendors that offer highly specialized, online, cloud-based, on-demand services. This type of company can offer significant flexibility for workers to live in and around the Bay Area, with a new normal of setting up headquarters in San Francisco with teams that work remotely. It helps security companies effectively tailor solutions according to the customer while allowing the team a place to sync up periodically. No one complains about coming into the office when your office is in San Francisco.
All of this new technology doesn't just sell itself – the broad variety of security solutions on the market depend on talent in PR, marketing and sales to differentiate the products – and is spurring job growth in related fields with specialists who understand the ins and outs of digital security.
The job market for people with digital security backgrounds is so intense that the demand is far outpacing the supply. Partly due to the lack of specialized training in colleges and the old views of security as boring, there are tens of thousands of unfilled jobs around the nation. The importance of the work, the news coverage of the Sony and CENTCOM hacks, and the popularity of shows like CBS's Scorpion have made digital security a hot place to work – particularly in the Bay Area.
The digital security's annual event, the RSA Conference, will come to the Moscone Center and it's one of the biggest conferences in the entire tech industry. For job seekers, there's no better opportunity to get a foot in the door.
George Parsons was the first employee of Verisign, a billion dollar security company and now vice president at HydrantID, a leading provider of digital identity and advanced authentication services for large organizations.
Randy Yagi is a freelance writer covering all things San Francisco. In 2012, he was awarded a Media Fellowship from Stanford University. His work can be found on Examiner.com Examiner.com.
