THERE is a shortage of cybersecurity experts in the country.
As of December last year, Malaysia recorded a shortage of 7,917 experts within the field.
The country’s target, CyberSecurity Malaysia (CSM) chief executive officer Datuk Dr Amirudin Abdul Wahab said, is to produce 20,000 cybersecurity-knowledge workers by 2025.
The current shortage, he said, is in part due to threats growing continuously with the rapid expansion of data-driven technologies such as the convergence of web, cloud, mobile and the Internet of Things.
As these technologies expand in use, so do the risks, thus making cyber risk management vital to organisations today.
“Protecting against targeted threats without disrupting business innovation and growth is an increasingly critical business, and is economically and socially imperative.
“This requires a global paradigm shift towards creating a more secure and resilient cyber environment that would allow people to pursue economic initiatives without being restricted by cyber-related threats.
“It is crucial to have a competent cybersecurity workforce to address this shift, shape the future and accelerate its adoption among communities,” he told StarEdu.
The lack of a competent cybersecurity workforce, he explained, is a global issue as in addition to the inability to easily identify these experts, the process of qualifying and accrediting them is a constant uphill battle.
This scenario has created a vacuum of opportunity in the area of cybersecurity education.
“The cybersecurity workforce gap is never static.
“The demand forecast of cybersecurity professionals in Malaysia can be estimated with reference to various empirical sources.
“However, several key factors must be considered such as the definition of cybersecurity workforce and cybersecurity professionals, participating organisations and sources of data.”
He said the (ISC)2 Cybersecurity Workforce Study Report 2020 stated that there is a shortage of 2.045 million cybersecurity workforce within the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region.
“This is about 66% of the total global shortage. Reflecting the total APAC population of 4.38 billion in 2020 and Malaysia’s population of 32.8 million, the estimated gap based on the population density is another alternative source of reference (when looking at the shortage),” he added.
More needs to be done to overcome this issue. Amirudin said CSM has been developing an affordable training and certification programme that is customised to local needs and is aligned to international standards.
Known as the Global ACE Certification, one of its aims, he said, is to reduce Malaysia’s dependency on international certification programmes.
Professional credential holders are required to be admitted as professional members in the certification scheme, he said, which is instrumental in recording and monitoring Continuing Professional Development activities, and upholding the professional credentials.
The training and certification are affordable so as to allow more people to get a chance to be trained and certified, he added.
“This is done without compromising quality. With support from the government, academia and industry, CSM has established this local cybersecurity professional certification scheme that is aligned with international standards of ISO17024, ISO27001 and ISO9001.
“It is established to identify, nurture and enhance cybersecurity knowledge workers continuously, and is designated to elevate cybersecurity knowledge workers to be competent and professional.”
Additionally, to produce quality graduates within the field, Amirudin said CSM has collaborated with public and private organisations, such as universities and colleges, by embedding CSM’s cybersecurity professional certifications into their syllabuses.
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